With a month’s worth of games in the rearview mirror, we’re doing a new NFC East roundtable discussion with our four site producers!
Let’s get right to the question and their answers:
What’s one thing that’s happened so far this season for the team you cover that was unexpected?
Scott Bair (Hogs Haven): The Commanders kept fingers crossed, while clutching a rabbit’s foot in one hand and a four-leaf clover in the other, in hopes of Jayden Daniels remaining healthy this season. We all know (and respect) what he can do when things are going well.
The electric 2024 campaign is proof of that. Daniels was consistently banged up in 2025, so him suffering an injury early this season wasn’t a shock. The complete breakdown at the quarterback position was though.
Having Daniels go down and then Marcus Mariota is not something you plan for. Being forced to play a seventh-round rookie in Athan Kaliakmanis was not, under any circumstances, part of the game plan.
The Rutgers product wasn’t a fatal flaw during Sunday’s loss to the Colts, but he wasn’t part of a winning formula. That was a winnable game in London, even with Mariota calling signals. It ends up as a loss now, as the Commanders fell to 1-3 and are starting a season’s collapse dead in the eyes.
Injuries are never an excuse, as all coaches will tell you, but this quarterback situation is a mess and might put the Commanders season to rest just as it’s getting started.
Ed Valentine (Big Blue View): Well, being alone in first place after four games for the first time since November of 2015 qualifies as being unexpected. Especially after losing their most important offensive player (Jaxson Dart) and most important defensive player (Brian Burns) for the season.
The Giants are not the most talented team in the league or division, and whether or not their success can last is a valid question, but they play with physicality, grit, resilience, and belief that they can make it right no matter what happens.
RJ Ochoa (Blogging The Boys): It seems silly to be surprised by the Cowboys defense being so bad given it was one of the worst in franchise history last year, but hype was justifiably high.
Even if you disagree with that, there was significant turnover at every point.
There is a new coordinator in Christian Parker, new pinnacles of talent like Jalen Thompson and Quinnen Williams (his first full season with Dallas), and somehow the defense has been about as bad as it was then. Nobody thought they would be Doomsday, but the goal was literally average and they have fallen well short of that.
Brandon Lee Gowton (Bleeding Green Nation): The Eagles’ disappointing defense. They haven’t been helped by an offense that’s incapable of picking up first downs to stay on the field. But the expectations for Vic Fangio’s unit were high. There was thought they might be one of the best defenses in the NFL, if not the very best.
It’s possible Fangio will get things turned around but it’s been a slower start than expected for this defense. The Eagles’ defensive front has been especially disappointing; they’ve failed to regularly create pressure.
Fans of NFC East teams, what’s surprised you this season?
