Mike Celizic

What in the name of power rankings has happened to the NFC East? The division that some thought would send three teams to the playoffs doesn’t look as if it deserves to send even one.

There’s still plenty of time for the division that traditionally rules the NFC to straighten things out, but it’s getting to the point where somebody has to make a statement instead of a polite suggestion. It’s mid-season, the time when great teams start asserting themselves, and we haven’t seen that from the NFC East.

It was all on ugly display Sunday, when the Giants — just a month ago allegedly the best team in the NFL — lost their fourth straight. That game set up the day’s marquee game between the Eagles and Cowboys, which turned out to be an all-natural substitute for Ambien. I’m not sure what it was they were doing for four quarters. It resembled football, but without the part where the teams move the ball up and down the field without tripping over themselves.

It was nothing if not a return to those boring days of yesteryear, the mid-1980s, when the New York Giants ruled the division by perfecting the art of winning games without taking the trouble to score in double digits. But in those days, you knew the Giants would win by whatever means necessary. Today, does anyone seriously think either the Eagles or the Cowboys can beat the Vikings or Saints?

Okay, go ahead and make the argument that it doesn’t matter what the final score is as long as you win. You’ll be right, but that still doesn’t make either the Cowboys or the Eagles a title contender. Not after last night, when neither of these teams showed a whole lot of anything that’s going to scare many people.

Yes, they played tough defense, but both defenses were helped by sputtering offenses. And until the Eagles can gain a single yard when they desperately need it, who can take them seriously?

And then there’s the rest of the division that so recently dominated the NFC. The Giants’ latest loss was particularly ugly, as they coughed up a lead in the final minute to San Diego at home. And the Redskins, thanks to the incompetence of owner Dan Snyder, have long since ceased to be a factor.

After their plug-ugly 20-16 win over Philadelphia, Dallas is 6-2, good for third in the NFC behind the undefeated Saints and the once-defeated Minnesota Favres. But they’ve got losses to the Broncos and Giants and they needed overtime to beat the Chiefs, who are in no danger of being confused with an elite team.

And, while the Cowboys do have offensive weapons, they still have the jolly Wade Phillips running things, and I don’t care what the team’s record is, seeing Phillips on the sideline is not a sight that provokes confidence. He’s good at cheerleading, but the man has yet to show the ability to inspire a 4-year-old to eat a cookie.

The Eagles have even less to hang their helmets on. They got wiped out, destroyed, annihilated, dismantled and embarrassed by the Saints, who laid a 48-22 whupping on them in Week 2, and also lost to the Oakland Raiders, who can’t beat themselves in an intrasquad scrimmage. Among their five victims are the Chiefs, Deadskins and Buccaneers.

There’s still half a season to go, and given that there’s a big fall-off after the Saints and the Vikes, it’s still not out of the question that the NFC East could send three teams to the playoffs. Given that there’s so little competition, two teams are almost a given.

Right now, the two wild cards would be the Eagles and the Falcons. The Cardinals have a two-game lead in the West, and the Packers are refusing to assert themselves in the North. No one else looks capable of threatening.

The Giants, Cowboys and Eagles are all capable of putting a lot of points on the board, and all have been known to play some stern defense. But none of them have played with the consistency we’ve come to expect of them. The Eagles’ D failed miserably in crunch time against Dallas Sunday night, as did the Giants’ against the Chargers. And none of the three teams could sustain the kind of offense they’ve shown against weaker opponents.

You keep thinking the real NFC East will stand up. You keep fearing maybe it already has, and this is as tall as it’s going to get.

NFL game stories Quick look at Week 9 games STEELERS 28, BRONCOS 10: Roethlisberger throws 3 TDs COWBOYS 20, EAGLES 16: Austin’s TD puts Dallas atop NFC East COLTS 20, TEXANS 17: Indy's 17th-straight regular season win  |    Video SAINTS 30, PANTHERS 20: N.O. now 8-0 for first time in its history CHARGERS 21, GIANTS 20: N.Y. loses 4th straight  |    Video BUCS 38, PACKERS 28: Rookie QB leads Tampa to first win  |    Video PATRIOTS 27, DOLPHINS 17: Brady-Moss connection thrives  |    Video CARDINALS 41, BEARS 21: Warner tosses 5 TDs  |    Video BENGALS 17, RAVENS 7: Cincy cements AFC North status  |    Video FALCONS 31, REDSKINS 17: Atlanta gets into scuffle, still wins TITANS 34, 49ERS 27: Young improves to 2-0 as a starter this year SEAHAWKS 32, LIONS 20: Seattle overcomes 17-0 hole JAGUARS 24, CHIEFS 21: Chargers cast-off Chambers can't save K.C. Byes: Bills, Browns, Raiders, Rams, Vikings, Jets