Saturday, September 26, 1998

The NFC Least - how the mighty have fallen

By DAVE GOLDBERG AP Football Writer

Not long ago, the NFC East was the best division in the NFL, producing four Super Bowl winners in three seasons: the Giants in 1991, Redskins in 1992 and Cowboys in 1993 and '94.

Now only Dallas, at 2-1, has a winning record and the five NFC East teams are a combined 0-7 against teams outside the division. Most of those losses haven't been close.

Why?

You don't have to be a genius to know that Danny Kanell, Jake Plummer, Trent Green, Jason Garrett and Bobby Hoying are not yet ready to take over for Troy Aikman, Phil Simms and Randall Cunningham. The only bona fide quarterback in the division, Aikman, is out another couple of weeks with a broken shoulder.

Here's a team-by-team look:

-Dallas (2-1). When Chan Gailey replaced Barry Switzer as coach, the assumption was the change alone would improve the Cowboys by two or three games from last year's 6-10. It could be a lot better, because the next five games are against teams a combined 1-13. They don't play a team that currently has a winning record until Nov. 22 (Seattle).

One major improvement is the offensive line, which allowed the Giants no sacks after they entered the game tied for the NFL lead with 13. Second-round pick Flozell Adams will be very good.

The defense still has some playmakers: Deion Sanders (obviously), Darren Woodson and Leon Lett.

-Giants (1-2). The demise is puzzling.

This is the youngest team in the league, the defense remains solid despite a series of injuries and Jim Fassel is one of the league's top coaches. But Kanell is one of many quarterbacks who has been force-fed early, the offensive line has regressed, hurting the running game.

There are also indications that signing many young players to longterm contracts was a mistake; some of them may be getting complacement.

"There are some people here who don't care about winning," All-Pro defensive end Mike Strahan said after the 31-7 loss to the Cowboys on Monday night.

-Arizona (1-2). Some people thought the Cards might emulate the Giants and go from worst to first. Some people forgot that Bill Bidwill is the owner and that Plummer put up big numbers in garbage time last season.

Eric Swann, Andre Wadsworth, Simeon Rice and Mark Smith might be a great front four in a year or two, but "might" is the operative word. Plummer should be sitting now.

-Washington (0-3). Norv Turner's a good guy, but he's probably best suited for offensive coordinator, not head coach. Nor have the personnel decisions been good. For all the money spent on Dana Stubblefield and Dan Wilkinson, only two teams have allowed more yards on the ground.

-Philadelphia (0-3). Eight first-round picks used on offensive linemen this decade, only one of them any good: Tra Thomas, this year's No. 1. Who knows if Hoying can be a good NFL quarterback when he's always running for his life.

Ray Rhodes, a good coach, is probably gone - he is blunt in his opinion of the front office. His draft choices aren't that great either: defensive end Jon Harris, No. 1 in 1997, is a bust and Mike Mamula, whom Rhodes loved, was a disappointment before he tore up his knee.