NFC East offseason power rankings: Commanders on the move in 2024?

1. Philadelphia Eagles

Jeffrey Lurie, the owner of the Philadelphia Eagles, is a fabulous example of what the Washington Commanders have been lacking for many years. Decades. An example of how building a winning organization starts at the top and trickles down.

The Eagles, let's not forget, were a dominant NFC team going back to the Donovan McNabb era. They have been doing this for a long time, have made several trips to the Super Bowl, and have once again just had a seemingly successful draft. They do things the right way - always thinking about the future - and it pays off.

Once again, with the return of much of their roster from the previous campaign, they should be the lead dogs in the NFC East. They have lost some long-time stars and cultural foundations in defensive lineman Fletcher Cox and center Jason Kelce to retirement, but they have also retained a lot of their players and even spent their first two picks in this year's draft to restock their cornerback room. This was their primary deficiency in 2023.

This is a silver lining for the rest of the division as regards the reigning division champions. If Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts continues a spiral downward, then Philadelphia could suffer diminished fortunes right along with him.

They have wide receivers and running backs. The defense should be better, but if Hurts has indeed put enough on film for defenses to know all of his tendencies and weak spots, then unless his accuracy suddenly shapes itself into better form, the rest of the division could take notice and this division could become an all-out arms race.

Until that happens, one simply has to place the Eagles in the driver's seat in their 2024 preseason rankings. But as is the case across the NFL, nothing is guaranteed. If they don't maintain their high-performance levels, others - including the Commanders - could pounce.