The New York Giants are getting ready for training camp, along with the rest of the NFC East. This is the second offensive position group in the NFC East Grading series. After the first offensive grading – tight ends – the Eagles had 17 points, with the Giants having 16, Dallas having 14, and Washington earning 13 points.
How does it work, you may ask? It’s VERY complicated! The best positional group is assigned four points, and the “worst” receives one point. Let’s talk about the wide receivers in the NFC East!
Washington Commanders
Roster: Terry McLaurin, Treylon Burks, Antonio Williams, Dyami Brown, Luke McCaffrey, Jaylin Lane, Van Jefferson, Chris Hilton Jr., Jacoby Jones, Jayden Bradley, Nick Nash
Terry McLaurin will be 31 in September, and he’s coming off an injury-plagued season where he caught 38 of 59 passes for 582 yards with three touchdowns. Despite the down season, McLaurin is still the clear-cut number one receiver, and one who is a respectable starter in the NFL. 2024 was McLaurin’s best season by far, so he’s not far removed from elite production.
Deebo Samuel was Washington’s leading receiver last year, and Zach Ertz was second – neither is on with the Commanders in 2025. Treylon Burks showed some promise down the stretch of the season, securing 10 of 22 passes for 130 yards with a score. Jaylin Lane also had 16 catches for 225 yards last season.
Washington did draft Antonio Williams in the third round and has some depth veteran players like Dyami Brown, Luke McCaffrey, and Van Jefferson. Overall, though, Washington receives one point for this exercise.
Points: 1
Philadelphia Eagles
Roster: DeVonta Smith, Makai Lemon, Dontayvion Wicks, Johnny Wilson, Hollywood Brown, Darius Cooper, Elijah Moore, Britain Covey, Danny Gray, Somari Toure, Quez Watkins, Erik Ezukanma
The Eagles traded AJ Brown to the Patriots, and now Philadelphia’s offense will look to establish a different identity, post-Kevin Patullo, and now in the Sean Mannion era. That identity may involve heavier personnel and more targets over the middle of the field to two exceptional route runners in DeVonta Smith and Makai Lemon.
The Eagles did lose their deep-field-stretching X, but gained a few players who have X capabilities in Dontayvion Wicks and Samori Toure, with Johnny Wilson being the big-body who could receive an interesting opportunity in 2026. Hollywood Brown is also a field stretcher, but fits more of a Z role.
Philadelphia’s depth is solid, but the loss of Brown was not enough to offset the return of Malik Nabers. I like the pieces the Eagles added, but I’ll take Nabers, Mooney, Slayton, and the rest of the Giants’ depth.
Points: 2
New York Giants
Roster: Malik Nabers, Darnell Mooney, Darius Slayton, Calvin Austin III, Malachi Fields, Odell Beckham Jr., JuJu Smith-Schuster, Braxton Berrios, Isaiah Hodgins, Jalin Hyatt, Beaux Collins, Dalen Cambre, Xavier Gipson, Ryan Miller
Malik Nabers is returning from a bad knee injury, which is concerning when ranking the Giants over the Eagles, but I believe Slayton is better than perception as a depth option with solid competition that includes Darnell Mooney, Malachi Fields, Calvin Austin III in the slot, and the two veteran receivers, Odell Beckham Jr., and JuJu Smith-Schuster.
This wide receiver group isn’t incredible by any means, but I do believe it is slightly better than the national consensus seems to think. It’s not saying much, but this wide receiver room is better than most wide receiver rooms we’ve seen from the Giants.
Roster spots that used to be occupied by players like Beaux Collins and Jalin Hyatt now have some hungry competition with players like Mooney and Austin III, both of whom are playing on one-year prove-it deals. I wouldn’t rule out Beckham Jr., or Smith-Schuster from having a role with the Giants, and Malachi Fields offers a completely different body type and playstyle to the wide receiver room. I thought about going to Philadelphia here, but, in the end, science says it’s the Giants.
Points: 3
Dallas Cowboys
Roster: CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Tyler Johnson, Jonathan Mingo,Traeshon Holden, Jaden Smith, Anthony Smith, Camden Brown, Denzel Mims, Jordan Hudson
Dallas is the clear-cut number with possibly the most dynamic wide receiver duo in the NFL: CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. Dallas has Pickens for at least one more season, as Jerry Jones and the Cowboys attempt to figure out how to lock down the star receiver. The roster gets a bit thin behind the top two, but Ryan Flournoy finished the season strong in his second year; he secured 40 of 53 passes for 479 yards with four touchdowns.
If Flournoy continues to develop, then he would be the reliable third receiver for Dallas’ 11 personnel package. KaVontae Turpin remains an elite returner with gadget upside on offense, and the depth of Tyler Johnson and Jonathan Mingo doesn’t scare anyone, but they’re young enough players who could develop. Marquez Valdes-Scantling was added as well, and he offers veteran field-stretching upside. Overall, the room is solid but the top two — and the other three teams in the NFC East — force the four points.
Points: 4
Final thoughts
The trade of AJ Brown dropped the overall division down and left Dallas with the clear-cut best combo. Nabers’ injury may slow him down in 2025, but he’s in the conversation for being the best receiver in the division, although Lamb has earned that distinction. The Giants and Eagles could be flipped, but I agree with the science on the one- and four-point recipients, which brings our total through the defense, wide receivers, and tight ends to what you see below:
Eagles: 19
Giants: 19
Cowboys: 18
Commanders: 14
