Can the Eagles pull off a rare NFC East three-peat?

For years, the NFC East has been one of football’s most unpredictable divisions. One team surges. Another stumbles. Expectations change almost monthly. Most often, especially recently, the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys have had the most say in how the season’s story is written, but now and then, there’s a surprise, as we witnessed from the Washington Commanders in 2024.

You’ve heard the take. Before Philadelphia broke the jinx last season, no team had won consecutive division titles since the Eagles won four straight from 2001-04. This time around, the Eagles seemed primed to win a third straight NFC East title, but preseason favorites rarely enjoy smooth paths to the finish line.

The Eagles weren’t immune to that reality in 2025, but they accomplished a feat that hadn’t been accomplished in more than two decades. Repeating is difficult. Everyone knows that even if they haven’t played a down of football, they have to know a three-peat is even harder.

No, Philadelphia didn’t suddenly become a weaker football team, but there’s something about being the team that every rival circles on its schedule. Philadelphia still deserves to be viewed as the favorite to win the NFC East, but it may not be a stretch to say the road will be more uncomfortable.

The Eagles remain the team everyone is chasing.

The roster remains among the NFL’s deepest. Jalen Hurts has already proven he can lead a championship-caliber team, while Vic Fangio’s defense enters another season with continuity and one of football’s strongest defensive fronts.

Even with Sean Mannion installing a new offense and DeVonta Smith stepping back into the WR1 role, the Eagles still possess enough talent to win the division. That’s why every discussion about the NFC East still begins in Philadelphia. The question is no longer whether the Eagles are good enough. It’s whether one of their rivals has finally closed the gap.

The Dallas Cowboys may present the Eagles’ biggest obstacle.

Every division rival enters camp carrying optimism. The New York Giants continue rebuilding around Jaxson Dart, while hoping improvements along the offensive line accelerate his development. Washington believes Jayden Daniels can return to his 2024 form and take another step under a new offensive system while a revamped defense eases the burden on its young quarterback.

Dallas, however, may represent the most immediate threat. The Cowboys already field one of the league’s most explosive offenses. If their rebuilt defense under new coordinator Christian Parker develops quickly, Dallas suddenly becomes a much more complete football team.

Peruse all of the popular platforms, and the experts all reach different conclusions about the division of race, but one theme surfaces repeatedly. The Cowboys appear to be Philadelphia’s closest challenger heading into training camp.

Philadelphia, despite winning the NFC East and playing a first-place schedule, seems to have an easier road than Dallas does. The Eagles control their own fate. The encouraging news for Philadelphia is that none of this changes the mission. The Eagles don’t need Dallas, Washington, or New York to regress. They simply need to continue playing the type of football that has made them the division’s standard over the past two seasons. Every contender enters training camp believing improvement is coming. Only one enters with consecutive NFC East titles already in hand.

That’s why the burden doesn’t rest on proving the Eagles belong at the top. It rests on someone else proving they can knock them off. Until that happens, every road to the NFC East championship still runs through Philadelphia.

This article originally appeared on Eagles Wire: Can the Eagles pull off a rare NFC East three-peat?

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