NFC East QB Report: Jones chance coming soon, what about Haskins?

No NFC East team has repeated as division champions since the Philadelphia Eagles did so in 2003 and 2004. It's far too early to crown any team, but after dispatching division foes in back-to-back weeks, the Dallas Cowboys have the inside track on pulling off such a feat. Through the first two weeks of the season, their quarterback appears to have ascended thanks to a scheme tailored around maximizing his strengths. Dak Prescott has accounted for over 750 yards with his arms and legs, and thrown seven touchdowns against just one interception. He's continued his high-level of play dating back to mid-2018 and appears o to be ascending.

While Prescott is enjoying the finest start to his career, it's a mixed bag for the rest of the division. The Redskins' Case Keenum is playing about as well as anyone could have hoped for in Washington, after being acquired via trade from the Denver Broncos. Repping his sixth city in six seasons, Keenum was impressive again in Week 2, but to no team success. Washington dropped to 0-2 on the season and the root cause isn't the passing game as most outsiders expected, but the supposed strength of the team, their defense.

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Eagles are playing with a banged up franchise quarterback, yet again. The biggest knock on Carson Wentz has been his inability to stay healthy, and it's already Week 2 and the signal caller is suffering from multiple ailments.

Wentz missed snaps at the end of the second quarter while being evaluated for a concussion, but this play in the first quarter may be the main focus.

Wentz may have injured his ribs, here, and was notably off as he threw two interceptions in the half.

Finally, in New York, it may be time to pass the torch. The Giants loss to the Bills on Sunday dropped Eli Manning's career regular season record to 116-116. All signs point to the Giants having a really bad defense and not enough weapons on offense outside of RB Saquon Barkley. It appears the club is considering making a change as they have a QB-in-waiting riding the bench.

Pat Shurmur leaves open the possibility that Eli Manning might not be the starting QB on Sunday. “We’re gonna talk about everything moving forward. I think that’s fair at this point.” #Giants “To this point what we’ve done hasn’t been good enough.” pic.twitter.com/75zi00u9G6
— Pat Leonard (@PLeonardNYDN) September 16, 2019

Manning has clearly been part of the problem in New York. Even though he's led the league in interceptions on three different occasions, he hasn't ever had a season where his interception and touchdown ratios weren't at a positive ratio. Until 2019; both currently sit at 2.2% of all of his throws. His passer rating (78.7) and QBR (30) are the lowest of his career and while there's certainly the caveat of the minuscule sample size of just two contests, he certainly seems awry. Jones' impressive off-season performance furthers the thought process it may be time to make the change in New York.

And that circles things back to Washington.

Haskins didn't have the same preseason performances Jones did. Keenum isn't part of the problem for the equally win-less Redskins. Yet one can't help but draw the ultimate parallel between the two.

If neither franchise has much hope, what is the purpose of delaying the inevitable and getting Haskins under center to gain experience.

The days of grooming a quarterback on the bench are long gone. Teams aren't waiting. Take a look at how soon first-round QBs are starting in this era of football.

Re: Daniel Jones ... Here's a chart I've kept on first-round quarterbacks, and when they've gotten their first starts. As you can see, since 2008, the idea of a redshirt year has almost always been nonsense. pic.twitter.com/J6omu1e2pD
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) September 16, 2019

One of the biggest concerns about starting Haskins to open the season had to do with the likelihood Washington couldn't protect him with Trent Williams holding out. Yet Donald Penn, had a clean slate against Dallas on Sunday, no pressures, no hits and no sacks against Dallas. Now, the Cowboys don't have a strong pass rush with Robert Quinn and Randy Gregory suspended, but there's still a bunch of talent on that defensive line.

Washington hosts the Chicago Bears' and their formidable defense on Monday night, so it's not yet a good idea to play Haskins, but how soon after that contest will be the right time? The next week is against the lowly Giants, followed by hosting the Patriots and a road trip to the lowly Dolphins. The Patriots look destined for another trip to the Super Bowl, but the two games surrounding New England are against the two worst teams in the league.

Shouldn't getting Haskins that experience be considered, as opposed to holding out hope Keenum could lead the club to a miraculous wild-card round appearance and exit?

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