Will NFC East Again Be NFL's Worst Division?

After 1-11-1 preseason, the trend is troubling

Here we oh again?

In 2020, the once-proud NFC East was served up as the paltry punchline of the NFL. Every team finished below .500, with the Washington Football Team sheepishly winning the division at 7-9 and then promptly losing its first playoff game.

For the greatest division in the history of the NFL - the one boasting immortal coaches such as the Dallas Cowboys' Tom Landry and Washington's Joe Gibbs and the league's most Super Bowl appearances (21) and wins (13) - it was an embarrassing, temporary hiccup.

Or, is it the continuation of a troubling trend destined to spill into 2021?

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We realize NFL preseason scores are meaningless. Exhibitions are all about player evaluation over team results. In 2008 the Detroit Lions went 4-0, then made history in the regular season by going 0-16. The Baltimore Ravens have won 20 consecutive preseason games. In that span they've won exactly one playoff game.

Still, the fact that last year's worst division is starting off this year by again falling down the stairs is at least a tad troubling. After this three-game preseason, the NFC East went a combined 1-11-1. By far worst in the NFL.

The Cowboys (0-4), New York Giants (0-3) and Philadelphia Eagles (0-2-1) all were winless, with WFT's 17-13 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2 serving as the NFC Least's lone sliver of "success."

Again, when Giants' running back Saquon Barkley doesn't get a carry, Cowboys' quarterback Dak Prescott doesn't throw a pass, WFT defensive end Chase Young doesn't record a sack and the Eagles give more playing time to Joe Flacco than starting quarterback Jalen Hurts, it's irrational to put too much stock in the bottom line.

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It'd be silly to doom Dallas' season based on fourth-string quarterback Ben DiNucci's 66 passing attempts (fifth-most among pre-season passers). But there's no denying that - so far, at least - the NFC East in 2021 smells a lot like the NFC East of 2020.

For what it's worth, there were eight undefeated teams in the preseason - all in the AFC.