Value Positions on NFL Futures and Props: NFC East 2019

The NFC East is one of the most closely followed divisions in football due to the preponderance of ‘public’ teams.   Few teams are as popular with mainstream fans as the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants. 

Adding to the high profile of these teams is the fact that they all come from large metropolitan areas.  The Philadelphia Eagles are -125 favorites to take the NFC East in the NFL futures odds at BetOnline.ag. Right behind them are the Dallas Cowboys at +175 with the Washington Redskins (+800) and New York Giants (+1000) bringing up the rear.

NFC EAST FUTURES AND PROPOSITION WAGERS

BET DALLAS COWBOYS TO WIN NFC EAST +175
BET DALLAS COWBOYS OVER 9 WINS +100
BET DALLAS COWBOYS TO MAKE PLAYOFFS +105
BET DALLAS COWBOYS +1/2 WIN OVER PITTSBURGH STEELERS -1/2 WIN +130

A ton of Dallas Cowboys-centric prop bets on the board at BetOnline.ag and there’s value to be had with several of them.  For whatever reason, there’s a sentiment that the Cowboys’ performance last year was something of a fluke.  There is an outlier in 2015 when the Cowboys went 4-12 but in 4 of the 5 previous seasons they won 9 or more games with 10+ wins in three of those years.  You should expect a strong effort from the Cowboys’ marquee stars since it’s a contract year for Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott and you know how that works out.   Elliott is still in ‘holdout mode’ but there’s little incentive for him to sit out the season since he’ll still have a year remaining on his contract if he does.  Kellen Moore takes over as offensive coordinator and he’s a significant upgrade from Wade Wilson who didn’t have his contract renewed.  The hope is that Moore can improve the Cowboys’ passing attack to compliment their strong running game. Moore has received good reviews so far and if he can get the Cowboys’ passing game to even vaguely resemble his college alma mater Boise State they’ll have something.  Hopefully, he doesn’t expect Jerry Jones to spring for blue ‘Smurf Turf’ at AT&T Stadium.  Dallas’ defense doesn’t get a lot of praise but they were excellent in 2018 ranking #7 in total defense, #5 in rushing defense and #6 in scoring defense.  Leighton Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith along with pass rushing monster Demarcus Lawrence are the anchors of what might be the most underrated nasty stop unit in the NFL.  There’s always a question about the ability of head coach Jason Garrett to get the most out of this team but the talent is definitely there.  Besides, Garrett won’t be going anywhere unless the Cowboys nosedive this season as Jerry Jones doesn’t want to ‘break the bank’ for his replacement. It’s been 14 straight years since the defending NFC East champion has repeated. Dallas has the personnel to break that streak.

BET NEW YORK GIANTS UNDER 6 WINS +105

Remember the name ‘Dave Gettleman’--he’s going to be the target for New York Giants’ fans ire after the team regresses even more in 2019 after a 5-11 year in 2018. Everyone gets the fact that the Giants are currently in ‘rebuild mode’.  They’ve done the ‘gut the team’ component of the rebuild but they’ve yet to show much indication that they have a plan for the ‘putting things back together’ part.  They lost arguably their best player on both sides of the ball with wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. in Cleveland and strong pass rusher Olivier Vernon  there with him. The defense took another hit with Landon Collins heading to the hated rival Washington Redskins. GM Dave Gettleman’s most dubious move was taking Duke QB Daniel Jones with the #6 pick in the first round when he would have almost certainly been available for the Giants’ #17 pick in the first round. Jones could become a decent NFL quarterback but for now the plan is to have him sit and watch Eli Manning for a year or two.  That’s the plan—the question now is how long the team will stick with veteran Manning.  Jones looked good in his NFL preseason debut going 5 for 5 and 67 yards with a TD pass.  Seriously—hard for a rookie quarterback to show any better in his first NFL game action.  There’s a lot to be said for letting Jones ‘learn on the job’ but a more likely scenario is that head coach Pat Shurmur will wait until the season is completely down the toilet before making a more. Saquon Barkley is a great foundation for any team to build around and his presence will keep the Giants from being a complete doormat.  The Giants would be better off just letting Jones hand off to Barkley all year.  This is a team in rebuild mode without a plan to do so.