The Eagles are the favorites to win the NFC East for a third consecutive year, something that had not been done since the Eagles won four-straight NFC East titles from 2001-2004.
The Eagles should have no problems threepeating—but, they could receive a challenge from a team that has gotten gradually better over the last few years, and that’s the New York Giants, who split with the Eagles last season. It may seem strange here, considering the Giants finished 4-13 last season—the second-worst record
in the NFC behind the 3-14 Arizona Cardinals.
Here, however, are a few things to consider: New York lost two games in overtime last year, one in which the Dallas Cowboys’ Brandon Aubrey had to boot a 64-yard game-tying field goal in the final seconds of regulation, and another in Denver when the Giants blew a 19-0 four-quarter lead. The Giants lost four games by four points or less, two of those four came against the NFC North champion Chicago Bears and AFC West champion Denver Broncos.
It’s a fan-friendly team that has become highly competitive.
Now consider the addition of Super Bowl-winning head coach John Harbaugh, who in his previous 18 years as a head coach in Baltimore has amassed a 180-113 record, with just three losing seasons, and is 13-11 in the postseason. The Giants have had one winning season (9-7-1 in 2022) in the last nine years, and haven’t won the NFC East since 2011, when they won the Super Bowl.
Harbaugh brings a Super Bowl pedigree and will make a culture change to a franchise longing for a difference-maker.
Defensively, the Giants’ core of young talent with Abdul Carter, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux will cause the Eagles problems for years to come. Offensively, much will depend on the health of quarterback Jaxson Dart, who is exciting to watch, unpredictable and prone to injury due to a penchant for playing reckless.
Another gaping question the Giants face is the health of wide receiver Malik Nabers, who was lost in the fourth game last season when he tore the ACL in his right leg against the Los Angeles Chargers. He finished with 18 receptions on 35 targets for 271 yards and two touchdowns. Nabors could be back for Week 1, and if not, definitely by the first month of the season.
Something that cannot be ignored is the Giants thrashed the Eagles last season in Week 6, 34-17, on national TV. Head-to-head, the game did not show much of a difference between the Eagles and the Giants.
The Giants pose possibly the biggest threat to the Eagles threepeat.
Will it happen?
Probably not.
But the Grand Canyon gap that once separated these two franchises is considerably closer than it was a year ago. Harbaugh can still coach. If Dart played for the Eagles, Philly would love him, and human bulldozer and Cam Skattebo.
Who knows what the Eagles will look like under Sean Mannion. There is a chance that they will be formidable once again on offense, but that area is still a major unknown, along with an aging, worn offensive line that is collectively piecing itself together from an injury-plagued 2025 season. The Eagles should threepeat as NFC East champions. They should get as far as the NFC championship, and possibly beyond. The window on this group is closing over the next few years. It seems to be just opening 85 miles north.
