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Yes, the start of training camps is two months away, but it’s never too early to consider the coming season. A look at the best-case and worst-case scenarios for the Eagles in 2012.

Dream scenario (13-3): The Eagles believed they'd assembled a team last year that could be among the very best in the NFL, and they believe it still. They will need to play defense better, but new middle linebacker DeMeco Ryans and the year the rest of the players have now spent in the new defensive scheme should help them do that. Michael Vick will need to commit fewer turnovers, but his words last December and so far this offseason indicate a better understanding of his own level of responsibility. In the Eagles' dream scenario, Vick plays safer than he did in 2010 and smarter than he did in 2011, and the meet-in-the-middle result is one of the league's most productive quarterbacks. With DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin and LeSean McCoy around him, as well as his own ability, he has no excuse not to be. The Eagles' dream scenario also has them leading the league in sacks again but covering receivers better this time, especially in the middle of the field. And it has Demetress Bell serving as a surprisingly good replacement for injured left tackle Jason Peters. If these things all come to pass, the Eagles will be capable of beating anyone on their schedule.

Nightmare scenario (7-9): Yeah, as bad as they were last year, they still managed to finish 8-8, and Andy Reid's had only one sub-.500 season since the turn of the century. In the Eagles' nightmare scenario, though, the turnover problem doesn't get fixed, the downgrade from Peters to Bell at left tackle messes with the entire offensive line dynamic, Vick gets hurt again and someone like Mike Kafka or Nick Foles has to start a half-dozen games. In the nightmare scenario, 2011 turns out not to have been just one down year for Nnamdi Asomugha but rather the start of a decline. Maclin can't regain his 2010 form the way he's expected to now that he's fully healthy, and Jackson remains a deep downfield decoy who keeps the safeties back and limits Vick's offense to smaller chunks of yardage instead of backbreaking big plays. The nightmare scenario, in which the Eagles finish under .500 in year two of this big plan, sees the end of the Reid and Vick eras in Philadelphia, and leads into a 2013 offseason of great change and upheaval in an organization that prizes continuity as one of its better traits.

» NFC pressure points: West | North | South | East
» AFC pressure points: West | North | South | East

Examining who faces the most challenging season for the Philadelphia Eagles and why.

Some of these are easier to pick than others. This one, for example. The person under the most pressure to deliver big-time results for the Eagles in 2012 is clearly, without question, quarterback Michael Vick. The Eagles have put every conceivable piece in place around him. They kept wide receiver DeSean Jackson, giving him the long-term deal he wanted after he sulked through a disappointing 2011 campaign. They just locked up running back LeSean McCoy, who scored 20 touchdowns last season and showed he can alleviate any pressure Vick might once have felt to score on his own at the goal line. They beefed up on defense. They tried to keep the offensive line together, and when an injury to Jason Peters kept them from doing that, they went right out and signed the best left tackle still left on the market.

The Eagles watched what Vick did in 2010 and believed they had something special -- a quarterback of such unique talent that, if all else were equal, he could elevate them above the rest of the league and to Super Bowl glory. But the Vick of 2011 let them down. He was too turnover-prone during the team's slow start, helping cost the Eagles very close games in September and October. He got injured and missed three games late, denying the Eagles a chance to climb back into a winnable division race. He played fine and put up nice numbers when he was healthy, but he didn't do anything to make the Eagles extra-great, and too many times he did things that hurt the cause.

The Eagles have high hopes for 2012, and reason to believe they've addressed trouble spots on a leaky defense. They have star-caliber players at key spots on the roster -- running back, receiver, defensive end, cornerback. They believe they have the pieces in place to be one of the best teams in the league. But they need their quarterback to make it all go, and for that reason Vick faces more pressure this season than does any quarterback in the entire league.

The crew debates if Cam Newton will have a sophomore slump, Mark Schlereth has the Colts should use Big Ben as the model for developing Andrew Luck, and who is the best offensive lineman in the NFL?

We have reached the add-depth portion of the NFL draft, and the Philadelphia Eagles have added some depth -- not to mention height -- at a position of need. With the 18th pick in the fifth round (No. 153 overall), the Eagles took Purdue tackle Dennis Kelly, who is 6-foot-8 and 304 pounds. Kelly moves into the backup offensive line mix following the injury to starting left tackle Jason Peters and the signing of new starter Demetress Bell and the re-signing of backup tackle King Dunlap.

Kelly is a project lineman, but the project lineman that offensive line coach Howard Mudd got in the sixth round last year was Jason Kelce, who emerged as the Eagles' starting center last summer and held that position all year. So Kelly becomes Mudd's next developmental guy, and the speed with which he picks up Mudd's blocking schemes will determine how quickly he can be a contributor on the line for the Eagles.

All right, fair is fair, and there's been so much Giants stuff on here the past two days it feels like the first week of February again. So here's a little something on the Philadelphia Eagles' portion of Todd McShay's latest mock draft -- the one that puts forth a number of different scenarios for each team rather than just assigning one player. Todd has four scenarios for the Eagles, who have the No. 15 pick in the first round. So without further ado ...

The first scenario is Iowa tackle Riley Reiff, should he fall that far, but Todd believes he will not, and has him gone to Buffalo at No. 10. If he were there at 15, he'd probably represent too much value for the Eagles to pass up, given the unsettled nature of their offensive line with Jason Peters injured and newly signed Demetress Bell a question mark.

Scenario No. 2 is Alabama safety Mark Barron, since as Todd puts it, "the Eagles have lacked a do-everything, physical presence at safety since Brian Dawkins left town." You can't go wrong in Philly invoking the name of B-Dawk.

Scenario No. 3 is "find a way to get a defensive tackle," but that's complex at this point, since he has Fletcher Cox and Dontari Poe already off the board in his projections. Should one of them be available, getting a defensive tackle would be as simple as picking one of the top two. But if Michael Brockers is the best remaining DT on the board, Todd says the Eagles are better off addressing another need or trading back and taking someone like Jerel Worthy later in the round.

And finally, the fourth scenario Todd lays out is the Eagles taking Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly if he falls to No. 15. This is still the best possible scenario for the Eagles, I think, though Kuechly looks as though he'll go much earlier. Jeff Chadiha has a story on Kuechly, if you're interested in reading about him just in case.

That's it for Todd's scenario mock. I'm not doing one of these for the Redskins. Everybody knows their scenarios.

So, two days away from the blog at the end of March was long enough to miss out on the conception and some of the execution of an ESPN.com blog network mock draft. I handled the NFC North's first two choices, for the Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears. My ESPN.com blog colleagues filled in on the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers.

There will be more mock drafts to come from the blog network, in addition to those authored by ESPN's host of draft analysts. So hang on. Below are the NFC North choices from Monday's blog network mock:

3. Vikings: USC offensive tackle Matt Kalil
Comment: There are of course no trades in this mock so we can't really explore what might be the Vikings' top choice here at No. 3. But barring a trade, I'm not prepared to predict they will choose outside the box at this spot. They don't have a left tackle, and Kalil is the consensus choice as the best non-quarterback prospect available. Despite general manager Rick Spielman's posturing, I don't see him getting cute. Yet.

19. Bears: Stanford T Jonathan Martin
Comment: I bet NFC East colleague Dan Graziano will grab Martin in our next mock, considering the newly-revealed Achilles injury of Philadelphia Eagles left tackle Jason Peters. But for now, we get to ponder a Bears future with a more promising left tackle than current starter J'Marcus Webb. Coach Lovie Smith expressed support last week for Webb, but you have to couch such pre-draft statements. I was actually hoping that Stanford guard David DeCastro would be available, but AFC North colleague Jamison Hensley grabbed him for the Cincinnati Bengals at No. 17. DeCastro is a beast.

23. Lions: South Carolina cornerback Stephon Gilmore
Comment: This is a perfectly logical and reasonable choice by my colleagues, addressing a need with an appropriately-ranked player. Gilmore would give the Lions an immediate alternative to Aaron Berry and/or Jacob Lacey at cornerback, and would certainly give them depth at a position that contributed to their defensive collapse in 2011. We all know that general manager Martin Mayhew doesn't make decisions based on need, especially at the top of the draft, but this might be a fortuitous combination of talent and need.

28. Packers: Wisconsin center Peter Konz
Comment: Again, I see where my colleagues were coming from. Scott Wells departed via free agency and replacement Jeff Saturday is a year-to-year proposition. But I wonder if there is enough urgency to draft a center in the first round. Often you can find a development center in the later rounds, and the Packers have a total of 11 picks after the first. Unless general manager Ted Thompson thinks Konz is so far beyond the rest of the class, I'm not sure he would pull the trigger on this one.

Related: Two other mock-related features posted during my short time away from the blog. ESPN.com's Todd McShay offered a two-round mock that, among other things, got the Vikings a receiver (South Carolina's Alshon Jeffery) and the Bears a tight end (Clemson's Dwayne Allen) in the second round. Meanwhile, ESPN.com debuted a "Draft Machine" that allows you to conduct your own mock and compare it to your friends'. By all means, go at it.

One of the topics our man Adam Schefter addressed in his regular SportsCenter spot Monday morning was the Philadelphia Eagles' effort to replace left tackle Jason Peters, who ruptured his Achilles tendon last week and could miss the entire 2012 season. Adam notes that free-agent Demetrius Bell was in for a visit this weekend but didn't sign, and that Bell also has visited the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Washington Redskins, and he says the Eagles might not be willing to pay him what he seeks.

Schefter also discusses free-agent Marcus McNeill, but he says injury concerns have knocked him out of the picture for Philadelphia.

Schefter indicates he believes the Eagles could address the tackle position in the draft, which is an interesting idea. We did our bloggers' mock draft last week, and it'll be posted soon. I gave the Eagles Mississippi State defensive tackle Fletcher Cox at No. 15 in the first round, and then after the Peters news broke I was going to change it. But I don't think the Peters injury, as devastating as it is, changes the Eagles' approach in the first round. Stanford's Jonathan Martin or Georgia's Cordy Glenn are options, but if I'm the Eagles, I don't feel I need to solve this problem with my first-round pick.

The Eagles have two second-r0und picks, first of all. And it's important to remember that offensive line coach Howard Mudd seeks specific types of linemen. He found his starting center, Jason Kelce, in last year's sixth round, and afterthought free-agent signing Evan Mathis became a star at left guard. It's entirely possible the Eagles could find a viable starting tackle in the middle or late rounds if they strike out in free agency, trusting in their system to get the best out of a player on whom other teams passed.

The Philadelphia Eagles announced Friday that star left tackle Jason Peters ruptured his right Achilles tendon while training earlier this week and will have surgery Monday to repair it. This is a crushing blow for an Eagles team that believed its offensive line would be a strength in 2012. The Eagles didn't announce a timetable for recovery, but it's safe to assume that Peters will miss most and possibly all of the 2012 season.

Peters is one of the very best tackles in the NFL and will be nearly impossible to replace. But replace him they must. They re-signed free-agent King Dunlap to a one-year contract Friday, which will help because he's their best backup tackle. But Dunlap doesn't project as a 16-game starter for a team with championship dreams, so they'll have to look at other options.

They have two second-round picks in addition to the 15th overall pick in the first round of next month's draft, so it's possible they could package some picks and move up in the draft to get someone like Iowa's Riley Reiff. The Minnesota Vikings have indicated a desire to trade out of the No. 3 spot in the draft, so if the Eagles wanted to really get crazy, they could trade all the way up there and pick USC's Matt Kalil.

But those are big deals and tough to pull off, and the Eagles' efforts to make such a move likely would be hampered by the fact that everyone now knows they need a tackle. So they're more likely to look at other options. The best remaining tackle on the free-agent market is Demetrius Bell, who's had offers from teams to play right tackle but may have been holding out for a left tackle job (or at least left-tackle money). The Eagles have the cap room to sign someone like Bell, and if Peters were to come back during the season or next year they'd have impressive depth at tackle.

Regardless of what they do, the Eagles will be hurt by this. Peters was one of the few reliable players they had in 2011, and because he's so good and so athletic in a division that features so many great edge pass-rushers, his was a spot that inspired supreme confidence -- not just a lack of concern. The Eagles had planned to return their entire 2011 offensive line intact, and now the other four members of it will have to get used to a new left tackle, and whoever the new left tackle is will have to get used to them and to Howard Mudd's unique blocking schemes. Won't be easy, but it now becomes one of the major offseason issues facing the Eagles.

Determined either to have the most boring first few days of free agency ever or clear cap room for a big surprise move or two down the road, the Philadelphia Eagles continued to make small, internal moves Wednesday.

They traded offensive tackle Winston Justice and a sixth-round draft pick (the 17th pick in that round) to the Indianapolis Colts for the Colts' sixth-round draft pick (the second pick in that round). And they also announced that restricted free-agent defensive tackle Antonio Dixon has signed his one-year contract tender and will return to the team next year.

The Dixon signing is important. They view him as a key piece to their defensive line rotation and a player who has yet to reach his full potential. He'll play for about $1.9 million in 2012.

The Justice trade feels like a salary dump and it is. Justice's cap cost was $4.2 million this year, and the Eagles surely believe they can find a backup tackle somewhere who will cost them less. With Jason Peters and Todd Herremans set at the starting tackle positions, Justice was expendable, and they move up 15 spots in the sixth round while dumping his salary.

As for which linebackers they're looking at, your guess remains as good as mine. I still think they should get London Fletcher, and maybe all of this tinkering is setting up for a move like that. But the Eagles so far are quiet, which is the way they like it.

The Associated Press has released its annual All-Pro Team, and the NFC East has four players on the first-team roster and three on the second team. It breaks down about the way you'd expect.

Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy is one of two first-team running backs, along with Jacksonville's Maurice Jones-Drew. McCoy's teammate, left tackle Jason Peters, is one of the two first-team tackles, along with Cleveland's Joe Thomas.

The New York Giants' Jason Pierre-Paul claims one of the two first-team defensive end spots, along with league sacks leader Jared Allen of Minnesota. And Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware is one of the two first-team outside linebackers, along with Baltimore's Terrell Suggs.

You'll want to know where the Giants' Victor Cruz and the Washington Redskins' London Fletcher are, and the answer is: on the second-team roster, along with the Eagles' Jason Babin.

Cruz and Arizona's Larry Fitzgerald are the second-team wide receivers. The first-team wide receivers are Detroit's Calvin Johnson and New England's Wes Welker. Hard to take one of them off for Cruz, no matter how electric he was.

Fletcher and Brian Cushing of the Texans are the second-team inside linebackers. The first team has three for some reason -- Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman of the 49ers and Derrick Johnson of the Chiefs. I know Fletcher is usually criminally underrated, but I'd be lying if I said I knew whether he'd played better than those other three guys this year. Just haven't see enough of them.

And Babin is one of two second-team defensive ends, along with Justin Smith of the 49ers. I agree with ranking him behind Allen and Pierre-Paul.

This was indeed a special season for the San Francisco 49ers and, by extension, the NFC West overall.

The Associated Press All-Pro Team, announced Friday, includes five 49ers, a league high for any team. Arizona's Patrick Peterson made the team as the return specialist, joining the 49ers' David Akers and Andy Lee to give the NFC West all three specialists.

The 49ers' Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman made it as inside linebackers. Teammate Justin Smith made it as a defensive tackle. He also got votes at defensive end. Smith moves around the line, playing end in the base 3-4.

Aaron Rodgers won 47.5 out of 50 votes at quarterback, a strong indication Rodgers will emerge as the leader in MVP balloting. Those results have not yet been revealed, but they draw from the same group of voters.

The chart shows All-Pro counts by division.

Also making the team: fullback Vonta Leach, center Maurkice Pouncey, guard Carl Nicks, guard Jahri Evans, running back Maurice Jones-Drew, running back LeSean McCoy, tackle Joe Thomas, tackle Jason Peters, tight end Rob Gronkowski, receiver Wes Welker, receiver Calvin Johnson, cornerback Darrelle Revis, cornerback Charles Woodson, defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, defensive end Jared Allen, defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, linebacker Derrick Johnson, outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware safety Troy Polamalu and safety Eric Weddle.

We have come to the end. I thought the idea of a weekly running All-NFC East Team would be a fun exercise for this blog, and I believe I was correct. I have had fun with it, at least. And I'd like to offer my personal thanks to Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning for helping make it even more fun. Nothing gets the blood boiling around here like a good Romo-Eli debate, and the fact that they both had fantastic seasons and spent the year switching in and out of the All-Division quarterback spot added some juice to this weekly feature.

But this is the final edition of the All-NFC East Team for this year, and there's only one spot for quarterback. The weekly disclaimer that no one ever reads is that this is a team based on overall performance for the whole year, not just the most recent week. So both Romo and Manning remain strong candidates. Romo has the better completion percentage, passer rating and Total QBR, all by pretty wide margins. He threw 31 touchdown passes to Manning's 29, 10 interceptions to Manning's 16. And while he was directly responsible for a couple of early losses that put the Cowboys in a hole, Romo played through broken ribs for a stretch and was brilliant through the second half of the season and in no way responsible for the 1-4 finish that did them in.

Manning had more yards -- 4,933 to Romo's 4,184 -- and took fewer sacks but can't claim this spot based on numbers. Manning's case rests on his five fourth-quarter comebacks, his 2-0 record in games against Romo's team and the fact of the Giants' division title by virtue of winning nine games while Romo won eight. Wins are an important stat for a quarterback. Some argue that they're the most important stat. Some argue that they're the only important stat. And the thing Manning did better than Romo in 2011 was win games.

And so, in an extremely close vote intended in no way to reflect even a little bit poorly on the loser, I have decided to give the 2011 All-Division quarterback spot to the guy who's still playing this week.

Quarterback: Eli Manning, Giants. I think if you asked both men, they'd agree Eli's year was better than Romo's.

Running back: LeSean McCoy. A wire-to-wire winner who never was challenged. Brilliant season lost in the Eagles' team flop.

Wide receiver: Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks. The only two receivers in the division to crack 1,000 yards. Cruz finished third in the league with 1,536.

Tight end: Jason Witten, Cowboys. Seemed to get forgotten at times, but still caught 79 passes for 942 yards and five touchdowns.

Fullback: Darrel Young, Redskins. Dallas' Tony Fiammetta got the press, but Young was a consistent mauler all season.

Left tackle: Jason Peters, Eagles. Best left tackle in the league this year. Brilliant season lost in the Eagles' team flop.

Left guard: Evan Mathis, Eagles. Unheralded free-agent signing was key to the Philadelphia run game.

Center: Will Montgomery, Redskins. Kept playing well as the rest of the line crumbled around him.

Right guard: Kyle Kosier, Cowboys. Injuries hampered him, but he deserves some credit for this next line.

Right tackle: Tyron Smith, Cowboys. One of the best rookie performances in the NFL. Expect him to be left tackle next year.

Defensive end: Trent Cole, Eagles; Jason Pierre-Paul, Giants. I know how many sacks Jason Babin had, and no, I have nothing against him. Cole just played better. And Pierre-Paul carried the New York defense in stretches.

Defensive tackle: Cullen Jenkins, Eagles; Jay Ratliff, Cowboys. Jenkins was one of the few real leaders in that locker room. Ratliff is Mr. Consistent.

Outside linebacker: DeMarcus Ware, Cowboys; Brian Orakpo, Redskins. Ware among the sack leaders again. Orakpo and rookie Ryan Kerrigan should be a force in Washington for years to come.

Inside linebacker: London Fletcher, Redskins; Sean Lee, Cowboys. An old war horse who's still the best at what he does, and a youngster who's burst onto the scene.

Cornerback: Asante Samuel, Eagles; Corey Webster, Giants. For all of the grief he takes, Samuel had a very good year in coverage. Webster handled some of the league's toughest wide receivers one-on-one.

Safety: Kenny Phillips, Giants; O.J. Atogwe, Redskins. Injuries limited Atogwe, but he played well enough when in there to earn the spot over the Cowboys' disappointing guys. Phillips has emerged as one of the best in the game.

Kicker: Dan Bailey, Cowboys. He had a tough finish, as did the team, but he was one of the best in the league for most of the year.

Punter: Sav Rocca, Redskins. Real tough call here between him and the Giants' Steve Weatherford. Rocca had just one touchback all year. That's precision.

Kick returner: Brandon Banks, Redskins. Not one guy in this division ran a kick back for a touchdown all year.

Punt returner: Brandon Banks, Redskins. Not one guy in this division ran a punt back for a touchdown all year.

So that's it. Thanks for following the All-Division Team this year. One final time: What did I get wrong?

» NFC Pro Bowl: East | West | North | South » AFC Pro Bowl: East | West | North | South

Perfect sense: You can argue whether he's even the best quarterback in his division (as you'll see below), but the New York Giants' Eli Manning is having a season worthy of a Pro Bowl spot. He is third in the conference in passing yards and has engineered five fourth-quarter comeback wins for a team that has won only seven games. Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy might have been the best running back in the league this season, and there's little doubt that his left tackle, Jason Peters, has been the best in the league at his position. People often make the argument for Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware as the best defensive player in the league, so it's little surprise that he snagged an outside linebacker spot. And a fine recovery for Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, a worthy pick who made it in spite of not being listed on the fan ballot.

Made it on rep: Eagles defensive end Jason Babin is red-hot and among the league leaders with 18 sacks, but I argue that he's not the best defensive end on his own team, as Trent Cole is the more complete player and Babin likely benefits from the extra attention Cole receives. Cowboys nose tackle Jay Ratliff has flashes of brilliance, but this isn't his most dominant season.

Got robbed: The biggest debate we ever have on the NFC East blog is over Manning and Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. This season, Romo has the third-best passer rating in the NFC, behind only Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees. Manning is sixth in that category. Romo also has the third-highest completion percentage in the conference. Manning has the eighth highest. Romo has three more touchdown passes and seven fewer interceptions, and, among important categories, trails Manning only in yards. Those who argue Romo in the Romo-Manning debates have reason to be upset. The Washington Redskins have no Pro Bowlers. If they were to have one, a case could be made for inside linebacker London Fletcher, who leads the league in tackles with 163, or rookie outside linebacker Ryan Kerrigan, who has 7.5 sacks and four forced fumbles. Eagles left guard Evan Mathis has been among the best at his position all season. And of course there is Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz, who ranks seventh in the conference in catches with 76 and second in the conference in receiving yards with 1,358. Cruz's case was hurt by his not being listed on the fan ballot.

Click here for the complete 2012 Pro Bowl roster.

Five things I'll be watching for when the Seattle Seahawks face the Philadelphia Eagles at CenturyLink Field on Thursday night:

Marshawn Lynch's ongoing revival. Lynch has 443 yards rushing since Week 9, most in the league. He has topped 100 yards in three of the Seahawks' past four games. Lynch appears to be running with more confidence now that his offensive line is opening holes more consistently. The Eagles' past five opponents have averaged only 85.3 yards per game, down from 140.2 previously this season. Seattle needs a running threat to minimize the Eagles' pass rush. The hard-running Lynch showcased nationally against New Orleans in the playoffs has marked his game recently as well. Lynch has 212 yards rushing after contact since Week 9, most in the NFL, according to ESPN Stats & Information. That's up from 127 yards after contact through Week 8.

Clemons against his former team. The Eagles generally haven't regretted the higher-profile trades they've made in recent years. Sending quarterback Donovan McNabb to a division rival comes to mind. Seattle came out ahead when acquiring Chris Clemons from Philadelphia for Darryl Tapp and a fourth-round draft choice. This will be Clemons' first game against the Eagles since the trade. He leads the Seahawks in sacks with eight, but Philadelphia has allowed only three in its last four road games. Clemons faces a tough matchup against Eagles left tackle Jason Peters.

Size against speed on the outside. The Seahawks' big cornerbacks, Brandon Browner and Richard Sherman, each picked off a pass last week. They have the size to throw off bigger receivers. Raw speed can be tougher to handle, as Browner found out against the Pittsburgh Steelers' Mike Wallace. The Eagles are without starting wideout Jeremy Maclin, but they still have DeSean Jackson. Jackson hasn't topped 100 yards receiving since an Oct. 2 game against San Francisco. He's averaging 17.0 yards per catch, though. Browner leads the NFL in penalties with 16, including 10 for defensive holding, defensive pass interference or illegal contact. A calf injury limited Sherman in practice this week. The Seahawks listed him as questionable. Eagles quarterback Vince Young has three touchdowns with no interceptions on his 40 shorter passes (those traveling 10 or fewer yards past the line of scrimmage). He has no TDs and five picks on his 45 longer throws, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

Breno Giacomini at right tackle. He faces a difficult matchup against Jason Babin, who leads the Eagles in sacks with 10. Giacomini seemed to fare well against Ryan Kerrigan and the Washington Redskins last week. He's fiery, competitive and likes to hit people. The Seahawks can help him by running the ball at Babin. They might need to help Giacomini in obvious pass-rushing situations, however. Babin spent part of the 2008 season with Seattle. He has 22.5 sacks in his past 27 games after collecting 4.5 over the previous three.

Concerns at linebacker. Knee problems are again bothering Seahawks middle linebacker David Hawthorne. His movement appeared restricted against the Redskins. Hawthorne was limited in practice this week. Seattle's run defense should improve with Alan Branch returning from an ankle injury, but Hawthorne's status will be important if the Eagles lean on LeSean McCoy. Philadelphia had only 17 rushing plays against New England last week, its lowest total in a game since Week 17 of the 2009 season.

Well, I brought my flak jacket and a suit of armor, because we're changing quarterbacks this week. Getting that one out of the way right away, since it's the one that's going to get the most people fired up over this week's All-Division Team. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo takes over the starting quarterback spot on our team from the New York Giants' Eli Manning after Manning held it for seven straight weeks. Why? Well, of course you know I'll tell you why.

First, the disclaimer that no one will read: This is an All-Division Team based on overall performance this year to date. It is not, repeat NOT a list of awards for this past week's performance. That is why Jabar Gaffney is not on it.

To that end, our quarterbacks' numbers are nearly identical, but Romo's are slightly better in every category except yards, where Manning has Romo by 15.2 yards per game. Romo has a higher passer rating, higher completion percentage, one more touchdown pass and four fewer turnovers. They've been sacked the same number of times. It's close. It could change again, many times. But through the first 11 weeks of this season, Romo's been the best quarterback in the NFC East.

I will address other positions after I give you the team, which features just four changes and now includes nine Cowboys, six Giants, six Eagles and six Redskins.

Quarterback: Tony Romo, Cowboys (Last week: Eli Manning)

Running back: LeSean McCoy, Eagles (McCoy)

Wide receiver: Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz, Giants (Nicks, Cruz)

Tight end: Jason Witten, Cowboys (Witten)

Fullback: Darrel Young, Redskins (Young)

Left tackle: Jason Peters, Eagles (Peters)

Left guard: Evan Mathis, Eagles (Mathis)

Center: Will Montgomery, Redskins (Montgomery)

Right guard: Danny Watkins, Eagles (Watkins)

Right tackle: Tyron Smith, Cowboys (Smith)

Defensive end: Trent Cole, Eagles; Jason Pierre-Paul, Giants (Cole, Pierre-Paul)

Defensive tackle: Jay Ratliff, Cowboys; Cullen Jenkins, Eagles (Ratliff, Jenkins)

Outside linebacker: DeMarcus Ware, Cowboys; Ryan Kerrigan, Redskins (Ware, Mathias Kiwanuka)

Inside linebacker: London Fletcher, Redskins; Sean Lee, Cowboys (Fletcher, Lee)

Cornerback: Terence Newman, Cowboys; Corey Webster, Giants (Newman, Webster)

Safety: Kenny Phillips, Giants; Abram Elam, Cowboys (Phillips, Gerald Sensabaugh)

Kicker: Dan Bailey, Cowboys (Bailey)

Punter: Steve Weatherford, Giants (Weatherford)

Kick returner: Brandon Banks, Redskins (Banks)

Punt returner: Brandon Banks, Redskins (Banks)

• It's amazing what Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray has done, and it's conceivable he could run down McCoy in yardage. McCoy only leads him by 272 yards, and considering that Murray wasn't the Cowboys' starter until the final week of October, that's pretty close. McCoy isn't in danger of losing his spot on this team any time soon -- not with 10 touchdowns to Murray's two and everything he means in the Eagles' passing game. But Murray's the first guy to even come close to being considered a challenger to McCoy this year. The third-leading rusher in the division is Eagles quarterback Michael Vick.
• The top two receivers in the division in terms of catches are tight ends Witten and Fred Davis. But Cruz and Nicks lead in receiving yards, have combined for nine touchdowns and have both been more consistent than DeSean Jackson and Dez Bryant. I'd call Bryant a better player than Cruz, but he's still too in-and-out throughout games, and for the season Cruz has outperformed him. And the Eagles' Jeremy Maclin is hurt, so his ability to reclaim one of the spots is on hold.
• Eagles right tackle Todd Herremans, who played one game at left tackle this year when Peters was hurt, is either the third-best or fourth-best offensive lineman in this division. The problem is that he's not playing as well as either Peters or Smith, who may well be the best left and right tackles in the whole league. I have thought about putting Herremans on this team and just putting him at right guard instead of Watkins, since I'm sure he could play it and if I were making an offensive line out of NFC East players I'd want him on it somewhere. And I may do that yet. But as of now, I'm picking my right guard from among the right guards, and Herremans is going to have to settle for this glowing honorable mention.
• People are going to get on me again for Cole over Jason Babin at defensive end. And yeah, Babin has 10 sacks. But watch the games. Babin is an all-out pass-rusher. That is literally all he does. He plays the run not at all. Cole draws double-teams, dominates anyway and is the more complete player. I thought about giving Pierre-Paul's spot to Babin this week, but I think he too plays the run more and better than Babin does. And he's got one more sack. It's nothing against Babin, you understand. He's played great and would deserve a spot if two guys ahead of him weren't so excellent. It's kind of like the Herremans thing.
• Either Kerrigan or Brian Orakpo had to go in for Kiwanuka this week. It's been close all along, and the 3-4 outside 'backers tend to impact games more than the 4-3 ones anyway. I went with Kerrigan, who I feel has made more impact plays than Orakpo has this year, by a hair. Good three-way race for the spot opposite King DeMarcus.
• And I keep switching those Cowboys safeties in and out for each other. Both are playing well (neither as well as Phillips) but Sensabaugh got hurt, so I guess that's a tiebreaker.

All right. Let me hear it. What did I get wrong?