Cowboys have no idea what they’re doing and other things we learned from the 2024 NFL season

Another NFL season is featured in the book, with a new Super Bowl champion chasing. perhaps Kansas City Chiefs The dynasty is not dead, but Lombardi's trophy run has at least been a temporary halt Philadelphia Eagles I crushed my 3-Pete dreams on a 40-22 morling. After losing to the Super Bowl 57 chief, he was revenge and red against the Eagles, making it easy to see in a rare way against Patrick Mahomes.

However, the Super Bowl is just the final chapter of the saga of the season. There are so many interesting storylines unfolding, and we look back at the 2024 season and review some of the main points.

The Eagles are the indisputable gold standard for the NFC (and they did)

Mookie: I don't even know if Eagles fans can fully understand how great the team is for almost the entire 21st century. Since 2000, Philadelphia has the most superb win rate in the NFC (.601), second-most division titles (11), most playoff wins (20), and appearances in the NFC Championship Game (8). Bowl Trips (4), and most tied for Super Bowl victory (2). Three different head coaches and quarterbacks took me to the Super Bowl. No other teams in the AFC or NFC can claim during that period.

Their only bad stretches were missing out on the playoffs five times in six seasons from 2011 to 2016. Even the Eagles' final four more than 10 loss seasons (1999, 2005, 2012, and 2020) followed quickly by the playoff berth. Philadelphia has been the standard for success in the NFC for a quarter century, and that gap has only widened following this victory over its chief. Still, if the Eagles lose a back-to-back game at any point next year, don't be shocked if they're sometimes called to fire Nick Silianni.

Drafting the right rookie QB will quickly change the franchise trajectory

Curtis: You only need one thing. example? Washington Commander. As the season entered, no one expected the commander to make the leap they made. Rookie Sensation Jaden Daniels was surprised by everyone (including myself) the season he had, and it was the first time the team reached the NFC Championship since 1991.

Daniels was behind my QB3 when it comes to draft class QB. New England Patriots'With Drake May Chicago Bears'Caleb Williams. The fact that he came in and quickly changed the commander's trajectory as a franchise was huge for them, just as CJ Stroud had his rookie season. Houston Texans. in the case of Denver BroncosBonnix is ​​not close to almost the same impact as Daniels, but was able to change Denver's trajectory. Still, Denver has a starter for NIX fans. Since retiring in 2016, you can feel happy after not finding a replacement for Payton Manning.

Homefield advantage remains king of the playoffs

Mookie: There is not steadily a lack of control of the house in the regular season, but it has not been translated into the postseason. In 2024, the home win rate was just .533, the fifth lowest in the last 20 years. This season, only Washington commanders win the road playoff game. Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions. Over the past three seasons, the home playoff team has been a whopping 28-8. Do you want to run deeper in the playoffs? You probably need at least two home games. There are some strange exceptions like 2021 Cincinnati BengalsKansas City Chiefs in 2023, 2007 and 2011 New York Giantsbut that's a rare reason.

The Dallas Cowboys don't know what they're doing

CurtisTo be fair, the Cowboys Super Bowl window will be held in 2022 with Block Purdy San Francisco 49ers In the NFC division. Fast forward to this point and the team looks completely different. The roster is far worse than that, manager Mike McCarthy is gone and there's no clear direction for this team. Things can change, but it's hard to feel positive about cowboys.

Newly hired head coach Brian Schottenheimer isn't necessarily bad, but he wasn't the most exciting job in the entire coaching cycle. Owner/GM Jerry Jones focuses on constantly interfering with team operations and attracting the attention of cowboys instead of building a capable team, and his overall arrogance is why Dallas is currently there .

The running back is back, baby!

Mookie: Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry and Josh Jacobs were the three best free agent running backs in the offseason last year. They finished first, second and seventh in rushing yards respectively, with Berkley earning the 2,000-yard mark in his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles and Player of the Year.

Berkley and Henry in particular were not washed or overrated. They needed a great offensive line and a great team to thrive. This isn't to say that running backs will once again move on to large-scale long-term transactions, but perhaps it's time for market revisions after asking a lot of questions about the effectiveness and value of their position in recent years. Berkley can be celebrated with the Super Bowl Ring after his historically stunning debut with the Eagles.

Which team was the most amazing?

Photo: Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images

Mookie: The Commander is the most amazing team in the positive aspect. Even the most optimistic commander fans could have foreseen the NFC Championship. They will definitely be considered in the running to win the NFC East next season…and perhaps more than that.

On the surprisingly awful side, I've always thought New York Jets It was exaggerated and didn't make the playoffs, but I didn't think they were this bad. Otherwise their stingy defenses would fall apart, Aaron Rodgers was far worse than his statistics suggested, and the level of dysfunction was Jetzian, even by the Jets standards. New GM Darren Moogie and head coach Aaron Glen have one hell of rebuilding in their hands. I hope they like to see Madden's ratings.

Curtis: Two teams come to mind. The first choice is the Washington Commander. Never, in shape, or form, they never thought they would be in the NFC Championship Game with Jaden Daniels' rookie quarterback and Dan Quinn's head coach Retred. Daniels raised the entire team and surpassed their expectations. Washington has destroyed the most victory totals of this century season, and destroyed the victory totals.

Second team? Jacksonville Jaguar. It was amazing to see the jugs defeating what they did. Two seasons have been removed from reaching the AFC division round. How the team looked to start the season will help you know this doesn't end well for anyone. It could have been the best as Jug has acquired a new coach at Liam Cohen At the expense of firing general manager Trent Barque.. Do you think victory is a victory?

Most predictable outcome

Photo: Al Bello/Getty Images

Mookie: The Bills and Lions were losing as they did, like they lost in the playoffs. One franchise is well-known, but you can't get past the top, while the other franchise is synonymous with losing. The bill has been shortened to suffer multiple times against the Chiefs, but the best regular season in Detroit's franchise history has resulted in a loss of 14 points for the commander. Jared Goff chose the worst time to turn to Jared Goof, but the decimated Lions defense had zero answers to Jayden Daniels. It would have been cool to see one of these two long franchises lift the Lombardi Trophy, but the wait continues.

Curtis: Steelers The late season collapse was something I saw as coming from a mile away. That's their mo. Start the season (this makes everyone think that they can become a Super Bowl candidate). I'm losing Thursday night soccer In Cleveland Browns The team, which struggled all year round, was a red flag that everyone should have paid more attention to.

Against the top playoff teams, they were totally above the top in every respect. Understanded from the violation Defenses are called to each other in successionthat was the ending that everyone should have come. I can't wait to see it again next year, but there are even more sudden results.

Bold predictions early in the 2025 NFL season?

Photo: Brook Sutton/Getty Image

Curtis: Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zach Taylor becomes the first coach to be fired. Taylor is the fourth-best coach in his division, and the team is well known for their slow start to begin the season, and has proven to be expensive as the Bengalis have missed the postseason over the past two years. It was a subtle sign throughout the season when locker rooms seemed to lose faith in Taylor, judging by interviews and body language. If Bengal gets off to a slow start, Taylor could exit the door (even if Paul Brown's pockets don't allow it).

Mookie: The Detroit Lions miss the playoffs. There's no doubt Dan Campbell is a very good head coach who has activated the Lion. But the coaching braindrain was real and there was a league-wide sucking of Detroit assistants. The biggest move was that offensive coordinator Ben Johnson became the Chicago Bears head coach. How many of Jared Goff's career revivals can be linked to Johnson's outline brilliance? You'll understand immediately.

Goff's regression (or a slight offensive line regression) could put things incredibly dangerous in Detroit, even if they regained an injured defensive star. Campbell was cruelly honest when he said it.“This could have been our only shot,” when he lost to the 49ers in the NFC Championship two seasons ago. We may soon find out whether they are visionary words.

Anyway, look at this article when the Bengals and Lions are performing at Santa Clara's Super Bowl 60 next February.