Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

The NFC East was already one of the toughest divisions in the NFL and that was before the trade of Donovan McNabb from the Philadelphia Eagles to the Washington Redskins. Add in that the Redskins brought in Mike Shanahan as their head coach, the New York Giants signed Antrel Rolle to the largest contract by a safety in league history and the Dallas Cowboys released their biggest weakness, left tackle Flozell Adams, and you see this division is again set up to be very competitive. At the same time none of the teams looks perfect. All four teams have some key questions they’ll need to answer if they want to win the division or make it into the playoffs, so let’s get to them.

Dallas Cowboys

1. Will somebody step up at the wide receiver position opposite of Miles Austin?

Take a look at the the rest of the receivers Dallas has and it’s not like you’re going to be left scratching your head when looking at the names of the guys directly behind Austin. There is Roy Williams, a receiver who was a proven commodity but has not lived up to his billing since being traded from the Detroit Lions to the Cowboys, and Patrick Crayton, a young guy who still needs to realize his full potential. Having Jason Witten at tight end alleviates the concerns a bit but for the Dallas offense to operate at a high level the Cowboys simply need more production out of Williams and Crayton. Last season Williams had 38 receptions and Crayton had 37.

2. Who is going to play left tackle?

So, if the season were to start today the starting left tackle for the Dallas Cowboys would be Pat McQuistan, and that’s because they cut longtime star Flozell Adams. Adams was becoming more well-known for tripping defensive linemen than blocking them. McQuistan was a seventh-round pick out of Weber State in 2006 and has played sparingly at left tackle and left guard, mostly getting time on special teams. Dallas is said to be fond of Doug Free, who has been a backup tackle for the Cowboys since being drafted out of Northern Illinois in the fourth round in 2007. It’s unlikely that head coach Wade Phillips and owner Jerry Jones would feel comfortable entering the season with Free or McQuistan as the guy entrusted with protecting quarterback Tony Romo’s blindside. Whether it’s through the draft or via trade, look for the Cowboys to upgrade this position before the season starts.

3. Who is going to play free safety in Dallas?

Along with Adams the Cowboys cut former starting free safety Ken Hamlin this off-season. The guys currently in line to get a shot at safety if the Cowboys don’t add anybody would be either Alan Ball or Michael Hamlin. Ball was a seventh round pick from Illinois in 2007 and Hamlin, who has no relation to the recently released Ken, was a fifth round pick from Clemson last year. Like Free, the Cowboys are said to like both Ball and Hamlin but since the Cowboys don’t have any other major weaknesses it wouldn’t be surprising if they looked to draft a snag and a safety in the first two rounds. Of course, we can’t rule out the possibility that the Cowboys could make a trade.

New York Giants

1. How will Antrel Rolle fit into the defense?

Rolle spent the first five years of his career playing cornerback and safety for the Arizona Cardinals but was released following last season. The Giants, in need of a safety, quickly scooped up Rolle and signed him to a five-year, $37 million deal, which is largest contract in league history for a safety. Though he can play both cornerback and safety he’ll only be a safety in New York. The key thing will be how well can Rolle adjust to the new scheme and resume playing at the high level he did the past couple of years. The Cardinals liked to move Rolle around a bit to try to take advantage of his flexibility and it will be interesting to see if the Giants do the same thing right away or phase him in slowly.

2. What are the Giants going to do at the linebacker position?

Currently the linebackers on the roster that have a chance at starting this season are as follows: Chase Blackburn, Michael Boley, Jonathan Goff, Kenny Ingram, Bryan Kehl, Clint Sintim and Gerris Wilkinson. Boley is guaranteed to start at right outside linebacker but the other two positions are up for grabs. The Giants like Blackburn and Goff but aren’t in love with either of them. One player the Giants would love to get their hands on is Alabama linebacker Rolando McClain, who appears to be a perfect fit at middle linebacker for New York. Unfortunately the Giants will have to hope McClain isn’t selected before they pick at No. 15 overall.

3. Are the young receivers going to step up this season?

Steve Smith stepped up last season, catching 107 passes for 1,220 yards and seven touchdowns. The same can’t be said of the rest of the wide receivers. Mario Manningham was second on the team with just 57 receptions and behind him was Hakeem Nicks (47) and Domenik Hixon (15). To be a complete offense the Giants will need somebody out of those last three players mentioned to step up and catch more passes. If this doesn’t happen, teams will be able to double Smith and press down on the running backs. Manningham and Nicks have the talent but may just need a little more seasoning. Look for Nicks to make a gigantic leap in his second year with the G-Men.

Philadelphia Eagles

1. How will Kevin Kolb do as the new starting quarterback?

The big news of the past week around the Philadelphia Eagles has been the trade of former starting quarterback Donovan McNabb to the Washington Redskins. For the past 11 seasons the Eagles have had McNabb as their starting quarterback but with the trade it is now Kevin Kolb’s time to shine. Kolb was a second round pick of the Eagles in 2007, one which McNabb questioned at the time,  but has shown good potential in the limited playing time he’s had. In two starts last year, when McNabb was injured, Kolb completed 64.7 percent of his passes, threw for 718 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions in leading the Eagles to one win and a loss. It’s a lot easier to be a backup and play well coming off the bench than it is to enter the season as the starter, just ask former Buffalo Bills signal caller Rob Johnson, so it will be interesting to see Kolb does. Should he flop, Michael Vick would get the opportunity to be a starting quarterback again.

2. Is LeSean McCoy ready to be a starting running back?

Given his history with injuries it wasn’t surprising to see running back Brian Westbrook get released by the Eagles earlier this off-season. Making the decision easier was that Philadelphia had used a second round pick last year to select LeSean McCoy. McCoy did well in limited playing time last season, rushing for 637 yards and four touchdowns on 155 carries. He also caught 40 passes for 308 yards out of the backfield. The versatility of McCoy means he’s a perfect fit for the Eagles offense, which annually ranks among the lowest teams in terms of rushing attempts. However, at 5’10” and weighing just 198 pounds McCoy is undersized to be a starting running back in the NFL. The Eagles are hoping he can hold up through an entire season the way Westbrook so often was unable to do.

3. What’s going on with the defense?

Seriously, what is going with the defense? If you are a casual NFL fan, go ahead and look at the depth chart and tell us if you recognize anybody besides cornerback Asante Samuel. Philadelphia has decided to go with a youth movement on defense, which will help in the long run but could sting a little bit this year. Guys like Macho Harris, Moise Fokou and Alex Hall appear to be slated for starting positions in the secondary while the defense line has three guys, Darryl Tapp, Brodrick Bunkley and Mike Patterson, who were recent high draft picks that have yet to realize their full potential. No doubt the Eagles will do some serious work in the draft on defense but getting everything to work together on that side of the ball this season will prove difficult.

Washington Redskins

1. How will Donovan McNabb do with his new team?

The interesting part of the trade that sent McNabb to Washington wasn’t that it featured one of the league’s best quarterbacks over the last decade; however, it was that it sent the player to a team within the same division. That’s right, McNabb will get to play against the Eagles twice this season and perhaps more if he signs a contract extension with Washington. McNabb brings a lot to the table. Not only is he a good passer but he’s a good teammate, a good leader and he’s also good at working with young receivers — something Washington is in dire need of right now. Santana Moss is an established receiver but behind him the Redskins are counting on third-year players Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly to step up, and that’s something McNabb can make happen, as evidenced by the production of DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin in Philadelphia last season. Also consider that new head coach Mike Shanahan has the ability to get the most out of his quarterbacks and you start to see that things could be ooking up in Washington.

2. How many more running backs will Mike Shanahan sign or draft?

Shanahan came to Washington an inherited starting running back Clinton Portis, a player he once coached in Denver. He then signed Larry Johnson, who spent last season doing damage control on his career as a Cincinnati Bengal but showed he still can play. Then in early April the Redskins signed former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Willie Parker. Suddenly the running back position is becoming more cloudy, something Broncos fans are familiar with. It’s not easy for us on the outside to make light of the situation; however, Shanahan clearly knows what he’s doing with running backs. Given how active he is at signing and drafting good players at that position, don’t be surprised if the Redskins get a couple more running backs either from trade, free agency or the draft before the season starts.

3. How well can the offensive line play in 2010?

Aside from running back, the offensive line was one of Washington’s biggest areas of weakness entering the off-season. Former tackle Chris Samuels retired in the off-season after sustaining a career-ending neck injury last year, so now the top offensive linemen for Washington are Stephon Heyer, Casey Rabach, Artis Hicks, Derrick Dockery and Mike Williams. Rabach, Hicks and Dockery are castoffs from other teams, Heyer has just seven starts under his belt and Williams was last seen being a bust for the Buffalo Bills. So it should go without saying that Washington needs to use the draft to upgrade its offensive line, and the trade for McNabb allows them to do that. The Redskins pick fourth overall so look for them to target Russell Okung of Oklahoma State, Trent Williams of Oklahoma or Bryan Bulaga of Iowa, all of which project as left tackles in the NFL, with their top pick. Of course that’s just one pick for five positions, so the rest of the line will need to come together if McNabb and the Redskins offense is to have any hope of being consistent this year.

NFC Burning Questions By Division:  NFC West  |  NFC North  |  NFC South  |  NFC East

AFC Burning Questions By Division:  AFC West  |  AFC North  |  AFC South  |  AFC East

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