The NFC East took a major hit in Week 2 when Jaxson Dart and Jayden Daniels both exited with injuries that could be season-ending. Dart left with a knee injury, while Daniels departed with an elbow injury, and the timing could not be worse for two teams trying to keep pace in a division that already looked tilted toward the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.
Those injuries immediately changed the conversation around the division. The Eagles improved to 2-0 in Week 2 and continued to handle business despite working through a new offense, while the Cowboys had already opened the season 0-1 after losing to New York in Week 1. With two of the NFC East's key quarterbacks now in jeopardy, the early-season race suddenly looks far more complicated.
Why the injuries matter
Quarterback stability often decides division races, and that is especially true in a year when the Eagles and Cowboys entered 2026 as the favorites. Losing Dart and Daniels for any stretch would force the Giants and Commanders to make major adjustments at the most important position, and if either injury turns out to be long term, the impact could reach well beyond a single game.
For Philadelphia, the task is simpler: keep stacking wins while the rest of the division sorts itself out. The Eagles have stayed unbeaten despite a new offense, which only strengthens the idea that they can create separation early. That matters even more when the Giants and Commanders are dealing with quarterback uncertainty.
There is still time for the picture to change, and Week 3 will provide the next checkpoint. The Eagles are set to play Chicago, and Caleb Williams was not ruled out yet for Monday night. But for the NFC East, the bigger story right now is the possibility that two teams may need to navigate a significant stretch without their starting quarterbacks.
If that happens, the division race could shift quickly. What looked like a familiar top-heavy battle now has a much more uncertain path for the Giants and Commanders, and that is the kind of development that can alter a season before it fully settles in.
