The NFC East is regularly one of the toughest divisions in football and despite the fact that three teams missed the playoffs last season in the New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys, the group remains as interesting as ever.
The Eagles have a new head coach in Chip Kelly, while the Giants are trying to get their Super Bowl formula together and are trying to sign Victor Cruz. The Washington Redskins will be an interesting watch as Robert Griffin comes back from an injury and the team tries to make the playoffs for the second straight season, while the Cowboys are trying to win with Tony Romo at the helm after giving him a new long term extension.
The Cowboys have the number 18 pick in the draft in the first round just ahead of the Giants at 19 and they likely will go after an offensive lineman after ranking 31st in the league in rushing yards last year with less than 80 per game. According to ESPN.com, the Cowboys are interested in Lane Johnson from Oklahoma at left tackle, but since he is considered a top 10 to top 15 pick, they may have to look elsewhere and one option could be Syracuse's Justin Pugh. The Cowboys need help all along the line and while he played tackle with the Orange, he could fit in at guard after his combine workouts and scouting.
ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. thinks that three offensive linemen could go in the top five, leaving the Cowboys on the outside looking in and one option could be to trade up, but it is unclear how high Dallas has Johnson on their board. The team helped originally develop the draft pick rating system and there is a chance they could trade out, but after signing Romo's deal they will likely stand pat at 18. The Cowboys don't usually take linemen in the first round, as their last pick was Tyron Smith in 2011, which was their first pick that high since Jones became the top dog in Dallas. Other options for Dallas include Chance Warmack, Barrett Jones, Jonathan Cooper and DJ Fluker.
The Giants likely will go defense with their first round pick, as that unit was the most inconsistent for the team as they tried to repeat as Super Bowl champions. The team likely will have a number of talented players to choose from, as Tank Carradine, Datone Jones, Ziggy Ansah and Bjoern Werner all could be left when the clock hits 19. Last year the team selected Davis Wilson after winning the Super Bowl and the previous season they took a cornerback in Prince Amukamara. General manager Jerry Reese usually takes the most talented player over a need and that could be the case again this year.
The Eagles have the highest pick in the division and likely will get a game changer in either Luke Joeckel, Eric Fisher, Dee Milliner, Dion Jordan and Sharrif Floyd, but they also could surprise and pick Ryan Nassib or Geno Smith to give some extra competition for Michael Vick.
