NFL midseason grades: Commanders are head of NFC East class, while Cowboys and Giants are not

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Record: 7-2 (first in NFC East)

Top fantasy performer: QB Jayden Daniels, 183.70 points

MVP: Daniels

Key second-half game: Dec. 22 vs. Philadelphia Eagles

One player can change the direction of an entire franchise, and for Washington, that player is QB Jayden Daniels. This is a good Commanders team led by a good quarterback, and that hasn’t been true for a long time. They’re undeniably helped by the Giants being bad and the Cowboys completely falling apart, but we’ve seen enough from them to know that they’re legit. And aside from games against the Eagles, Steelers and Falcons, their second-half schedule is a cakewalk compared to the first half. If they can continue to develop together and avoid major injuries, this is a Commanders team we may be seeing well into January.

Record: 6-2 (second in NFC East)

Top fantasy performer: QB Jalen Hurts, 181.16 points

MVP: RB Saquon Barkley

Key second-half game: Dec. 22 at Commanders

This Eagles team looks nothing like the team that lost by one point to the Falcons, then got doubled up by the Buccaneers two weeks later. They’ve ripped off four straight wins, Kellen Moore’s offense is fully unrolled and operational, and Saquon Barkley is the yard-eating monster the Eagles hoped he’d be. Their defense has had great moments, but has consistently fallen apart in the second half of games. The Eagles have to fix that if they hope to top the Commanders in the NFC East, because their second-half schedule is much, much harder than the first.

Record: 3-5 (third in NFC East)

Top fantasy performer: QB Dak Prescott, 124.52 points

MVP: The tablet Mike McCarthy smashed on the sideline during Week 9

Key second-half game: Nov. 28 vs. Giants

The Cowboys had a ho-hum offseason, and now injuries have them paying a steep price. They’re without Micah Parsons, DaRon Bland, and now Dak Prescott, just to name a few, though Parsons is expected to return this week. Cooper Rush wasn’t bad when he filled in for Prescott in 2022, but the Cowboys were a better team with fewer injuries then. Before the deadline on Tuesday, team owner and GM Jerry Jones acquired Jonathan Mingo from the Panthers in what can be described as a panic trade. He gave up more to acquire Mingo (a 2025 fourth-round draft pick) than he got in exchange for Amari Cooper. There’s no way to spruce this up: It’s bleak right now in Jerryworld.

Record: 2-7 (fourth in NFC East)

Top fantasy performer: QB Daniel Jones, 128.18 points

MVP: WR Malik Nabers

Key second-half game: Week 19 vs. no one because the season will be over

Good news for Giants fans: The season is half over! Unfortunately, the team still has another eight games to play, and it looks like Daniel Jones will be starting all of them. There might be some blowouts in store for the Giants in the second half (Week 11 against the Buccaneers, Week 15 against the Ravens, Week 18 against the Eagles), but there is one unvarnished positive in all of this: At the end of this season, one quarter of Jones’ four-year, $160 million contract extension will be complete. Unless someone figures out how to spin the Earth backward, you won’t have to live this season over again.