NFC East: No Unbeatens Heading Into Week 3

Cowboys rally and Eagles flop as division remains tight early in season

As the Washington Football Team and their fans sat back and relaxed following the Thursday Night Football win to kick off the NFL's Week 2, two other NFC East teams were in action Sunday. 

The Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys both took the field to face out-of-division opponents. One looking to start 2-0, and the other trying to prevent an 0-2 start just like the WFT did earlier in the week. 

A look at the division, starting with the team that heads into Week 3 of the 2021 NFL Season sitting in first place. 

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WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAM

After losing to the Los Angeles Chargers at home, and squeaking out a win against the New York Giants in Week 2, the Washington Football Team are leaders in the division as it stands today. 

Why? Because of the division win over the Giants just this week. Simply put, no other NFC East team has a win in the division. This gives the WFT a big tie-breaker among the three teams currently standing at 1-1. 

Ok. So it may not hit all too hard right now, but as the weeks go on, every division win is going to count. 

The highlight from this game had to be quarterback Taylor Heinicke, who finished with 34 completions on 46 pass attempts and racked up 336 yards with two touchdowns. 

DALLAS COWBOYS

In a tie for second place with matching 1-1 records, we'll start with the divisional team that won their game. The Dallas Cowboys defeated the Los Angeles Chargers by a final score of 20-17.

If you watched the game, and left it thinking the Cowboys should have lost, you aren't alone. 

Just like many are saying the WFT was lucky to escape its game against the Giants, Dak Prescott and his squad are hearing a lot of referee-assisted chatter following their win. 

Some ill-timed penalties - two of which negated touchdowns - and a missed field goal derailed the Chargers' attempt at starting their own season 2-0, and quarterback Justin Herbert finished with two interceptions to just one touchdown pass. 

A last-second field goal from Greg Zuerlein sealed the deal for the Cowboys, as they escaped from L.A. with a three-point win. 

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

The Eagles were the only team to win their Week 1 contest, but any hopes of going undefeated didn't last past Week 2 as they fell to the San Francisco 49ers, 17-11. 

After torching the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1 with 264-yards passing and three touchdowns, quarterback Jalen Hurts completed just 12 passes against the 49ers and finished with under 200 yards passing with no touchdowns. 

Coaching decisions are going to be a topic of conversation this week. Specifically, a decision to go for a touchdown on fourth-and-goal while up three early in the game. 

Yes, going up 10-0 against San Francisco would've been big. But leaving a goal-to-go drive without points at all, would only charge up the 49ers' defense while deflating the Eagles' offense. 

The result was exactly that as the Eagles failed in their bid to find the end zone, and the 49ers promptly drove the ball 97 yards for a go-ahead touchdown. 

Philadelphia never truly looked in sync again after that, and the 49ers never relinquished the lead. 

The loss drops the Eagles to 1-1 on the season before next week's Monday Night Football matchup against the Cowboys in Arlington

NEW YORK GIANTS

Despite Daniel Jones' impressive night, the Giants found a way to lose a big divisional game, and now face more questions than ever. 

As the only team in the division to start 0-2, New York is firmly at the bottom looking up, but there's plenty of football left to play. 

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WHAT'S NEXT?

For the Washington Football Team, a big measuring stick match-up with Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills is coming up. It's the first road game for the WFT, and a chance to earn a statement win, early in the season.

That game is scheduled to kickoff at 1 pm ET, as is the New York Giants' contest at home against the lowly Atlanta Falcons. Two 0-2 teams will enter MetLife Stadium, and one of them will leave with a win. Maybe. 

The Falcons are looking like a team in search of their future identity while the Giants are trying to figure out if their current franchise quarterback is meant to be for much longer. 

Two quarterbacks in very different phases of their career, but if Jones loses to Matt Ryan's Falcons, things might start to get ugly in NYC. 

Next week we won't do this roundup until after MNF as the Eagles visit the Cowboys to cap off Week 3. 

Division wins are always big, and with WFT an underdog in Buffalo, a claim to sole possession of first place in the division could be on the line.