The Dallas Cowboys are fighting history in terms of repeating as NFC East Champions.
Usually I say that it doesn’t mean anything, but I don’t know if I can say that I really believe that. To be clear I am not saying that it means a lot, but we are talking about 20 years here. 20 years of anything is not nothing by any stretch of the definition of it all.
Just think about how much life happens in 20 years. You can’t dismiss it.
What am I talking about, you ask? With the NFL season finally here (sweet potato pie that felt good to say out loud) our ambitions are as tall as ever with the Dallas Cowboys, even if the offseason that got us here was underwhelming.
The goal, as it has been for almost 30 years now (even more time than 20), is for them to at long last add a sixth Lombardi Trophy at the entrance of The Star in Frisco. If history is any indicator, we will wind up disappointed.
While we are talking about history, it is worth mentioning that it is a stream the Cowboys will have to swim against with regards to one of their more immediate goals. You do not have to win your division to enter the playoffs as we all know, but doing so would be wise for the Cowboys seeing as their last road win in the postseason before the one in Tampa two years ago was literally the 1992 NFC Championship Game. Winning the division guarantees a home game, and even though that did not help at all last year, anybody affiliated with any team will tell you that is step number one.
It is a big step for the Cowboys.
The NFC East has not had a repeat winner since 2004
Up top was a reference to something that we refer to around this time of year – the fact that the NFC East has not had a repeat division champion since 2004.
NFC East Champions, 2004-Present
- 2004: Philadelphia Eagles
- 2005: New York Giants
- 2006: Philadelphia Eagles
- 2007: Dallas Cowboys
- 2008: New York Giants
- 2009: Dallas Cowboys
- 2010: Philadelphia Eagles
- 2011: New York Giants
- 2012: Washington franchise
- 2013: Philadelphia Eagles
- 2014: Dallas Cowboys
- 2015: Washington franchise
- 2016: Dallas Cowboys
- 2017: Philadelphia Eagles
- 2018: Dallas Cowboys
- 2019: Philadelphia Eagles
- 2020: Washington Football Team
- 2021: Dallas Cowboys
- 2022: Philadelphia Eagles
- 2023: Dallas Cowboys
There are two Super Bowl Champions (the 2007 Giants were a Wild Card team) and plenty of number one seeds sprinkled within that group. Additionally there is a below .500 team that Washington trotted out in 2020 (nobody bothers to bring that up when talking about the Buccaneers’ playoff wins through the Super Bowl that year, but hey, facts and whatever). Needles to say the NFC East has seen basically everything for two decades now.
Except a repeat champion.
This brings us back to the point up top. Do I believe that the 2005 Giants have anything to do with the 2024 Cowboys? Are the 2010 Eagles in any way tied to the 2024 Commanders? Obviously the answers here are no, but how can we say that this means nothing when it has been 20 years?
At most this is all a continued run of weird coincidences impacted by a variety of things that fill every NFL season and we shouldn’t overreact to it in any sort of serious way, but again, it is a strange thing and makes betting on the Cowboys to win the division this year (even if the offseason hadn’t been frustrating) feel a bit scary.
On the subject of betting, the Cowboys are not favored to win it at season’s beginning:
Odds to win the NFC East at Week 1, according to FanDuel Sportsbook:
- Philadelphia Eagles…………………………… -140
- Dallas Cowboys……………………………….. +175
- Washington Commanders……………….. +1100
- New York Giants………………………………. +1600
Just because the odds are what they are does not mean that this is impossible by any stretch, but it again adds to the this-doesn’t-feel-all-too-likely-ness of it all.
Consider that Dallas is tied for the fourth-best odds to win the NFC and lead the Atlanta Falcons in this regard despite the Falcons being the favorites to win the NFC South, a testament to what we can expect from that division.
Odds to win the NFC at Week 1, according to FanDuel Sportsbook:
- San Francisco 49ers………………………….. +260
- Detroit Lions…………………………………….. +500
- Philadelphia Eagles……………………………. +600
- Green Bay Packers…………………………….. +900
- Dallas Cowboys………………………………… +900
- Atlanta Falcons………………………………… +1200
For what it is worth, the Green Bay Packers are also second in odds to win their division. Maybe that makes you feel better about last year’s Wild Card playoff loss, but I would bet just about everything in the world that it does not.
Do you think the Cowboys will win the NFC East in 2024? Or the NFC?
Now is the time to put it on record before everything starts for real.
