The Philadelphia Eagles have undoubtedly run the NFC East over the last decade or so. With five division titles and two Super Bowl rings since 2017, the Dallas Cowboys' bitter rival has been a thorn in their side and one of the most feared franchises in the NFL, especially in recent years.
But this offseason saw a massive swing of momentum. For the second straight offseason, the Eagles lost way more talent in free agency than they acquired. The Cowboys, however, worked through all of the proper channels to upgrade the roster and coaching staff, providing promise for the fanbase.
And on Monday, the cherry was so beautifully placed on top of the sundae. After months and months of speculation and dot connecting, Philadelphia finally dealt wide receiver A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots for a 2028 first-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. This long-expected bombshell gives Dallas a golden ticket to rightfully take back the NFC East.
Eagles' AJ Brown trade clears Dallas Cowboys' way back to NFC East crown
While the Eagles' turmoil with Brown may now be over, he may have only been the tip of the iceberg or the first domino to fall. Throughout the 2025 NFL season and all offseason, we've heard that there are doubts in Philadelphia about the pairing of Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts, or perhaps both individually.
After replacing Matt Eberflus with Christian Parker, keeping George Pickens in town (at least for now), re-signing Javonte Williams, trading for Rashan Gary and re-tooling every level of the defense from both a starting and depth standpoint, the Cowboys and their fans have to be feeling pretty good.
Yes, the New York Giants also got better this offseason, but the Eagles may very well be crumbling, and it remains to be seen exactly what the Washington Commanders' plan is. I suspect they don't have much of one at all, unless it involves adding Brandon Aiyuk, which would be a disaster.
The Cowboys certainly don't have the easiest schedule, but the door is now wide open to the NFC East crown after the Eagles traded Brown away. The future capital that Howie Roseman got is great, but that won't help Philadelphia in 2026. Now is the time for Dallas to seize the division.
Roseman and Sirianni will not only be relying on DeVonta Smith to step up into Brown's role, which is a bit of a gamble for a player of his stature, but on rookie Makai Lemon and underwhelming veterans like Hollywood Brown and Dontavyion Wicks to step up and be the No. 2 and 3 guys.
Time will tell how the Brown trade works out for the Eagles, but the knee-jerk reaction is that it is a mistake, even if it was a move that they had to make. Philadelphia was backed into a corner because its relationship with Brown had deteriorated, and now Dallas is well-positioned to capitalize.
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