At 1-2 and playing ragged football, Washington still sits atop the abysmal NFC East (for the moment)

It’s a bit hard to believe after watching the Washington Football Team, established in 1932, struggle in the desert against the Cardinals, and then follow it up with a 5-turnover performance that featured three interceptions and a fumble by quarterback Dwayne Haskins, but the burgundy and gold continue to lead the division because — so far at least — everyone else is worse than we are.

The Dallas Cowboys, of course, sport an equally “impressive” 1-2 overall record, but Washington claims the division lead by virtue of having played and won a division game, while Dallas has yet to enter division play. I think it’s fair to say that the Cowboys have had the tougher schedule to date, with games against the Rams, Falcons and Seahawks. Still, 1-2 is 1-2.

The Week three outcomes, in which no NFC East team managed to secure a victory, leaves the standings looking like this:

The Giants were crushed at home by a wounded SF 49ers team playing backups at key positions. Philadelphia, in the battle of winless clubs involving the 0-2 Eagles and the 0-2 Bengals, managed to play 70 minutes and come away with a tie. In the late afternoon time slot, the Cowboys went into Seattle and managed to stay competitive until the final seconds before falling to the Seahawks, losing their opportunity to take over sole possession of the division lead after three weeks.

• Every team in the division has a negative point differential.
• According to the Football Database, all four teams have a negative turnover differential as well, with the NFC East teams making up 4 of the 6 NFL teams to have given away more than they’ve taken away. The Eagles have an astonishing 8 giveaways in 3 games versus just one takeaway, for a net of -7. The Giants and Cowboys are both at -4, and the WFT, despite its 5-turnover effort yesterday, is the best in the division at -3.
• Dallas, surprisingly, ranks 9th overall in points scored in the first three games of the season, according to TeamRankings.com. Meanwhile, Washington, Philly and New York rank 25th, 28th and 32nd, respectively, in points scored. Dallas and Washington are both, so far, averaging more points per game than they did in 2019, while Philly and NY are both averaging less.

Fans of all NFC East teams are understandably unimpressed.

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The next two weeks may see a shuffling in the division standings.

Week 4 sees Washington at home against the powerful Baltimore Ravens, the Cowboys hosting the Browns, the Giants playing at the Rams and the Eagles at the 49ers.

I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that the Cowboys don’t gift the Browns 4 meaningful turnovers and that they come away with a win while WFT, Philly and NY all take another loss.

In Week 5, the Cowboys are having the Giants to the stadium in Texas for a barbecue. The Eagles have to go to Pittburgh, while the Rams come to Washington. Like Week 4, I’m expecting the Cowboys to be the only team in the division to chalk up a win, which could give them a seriously impressive 2 game lead in the division, with a 3-2 overall and 1-0 division record compared to only a single win between the three division rivals.

By the time Week 6 begins, the Cowboys could be fully in control of the worst division in football.