NFC East news: Quarterback central focus for Giants, Commanders; Kelce still ponders official decision

Here’s what’s going on around the NFC East division.

Cover 4: What to look for at college all-star games – John Schmeelk, Dan Salomone, et al., Giants.com

New York will be looking to add a passer in this year’s draft.

Matt Citak: Joe Schoen has made it clear that the Giants will be adding to their quarterback room this offseason, either through free agency or the draft. If they decide to go the draft route, there will be some interesting options to choose from. The top three quarterbacks – Caleb Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels – could easily be the first three picks, which would leave the Giants with the next tier of quarterbacks to choose from, whether it’s in the first round or later in the draft. Luckily for the Giants and the rest of the league selecting beyond the first three picks, almost all of the other highly-ranked quarterback prospects will be participating in either the Shrine Bowl or Senior Bowl.

The Shrine Bowl will feature several quarterbacks who should hear their names called in April’s draft. Florida State’s Jordan Travis, the 2023 ACC Player of the Year, will be in Frisco, Texas, while Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa, Tua’s younger brother, will also be there.

Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, who will serve as the head coach of the West Team, will get a front row seat and should be able to gather plenty of intel for the front office on the entire roster, not just quarterbacks.

But it’s the quarterbacks participating in this year’s Senior Bowl that I am most interested to see. This group consists of Washington’s Michael Penix Jr., Oregon’s Bo Nix, Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman, Tennessee’s Joe Milton III, Tulane’s Michael Pratt, and South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler, who are some of the top quarterbacks in this year’s draft. According to ESPN’s Mel Kiper, Penix is the No. 4 QB, while Nix (No. 6), Rattler (No. 7), Pratt (No. 8) and Milton (No. 9) all find themselves in the top 10 (the only top QB not participating in either all-star game, outside of the top three, is Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy, Kiper’s No. 5-ranked QB).

Giants quarterbacks coach Shea Tierney will serve as offensive coordinator for the National Team, which features Penix, Nix and Hartman. These all-star games represent the beginning of the pre-draft process (outside of the college season itself), and are the first real chance for prospects to leave their mark on NFL GMs and coaches. I for one am excited to see how all of the quarterbacks perform, especially during the practices throughout the week.

Commanders Looming QB Decision Could Define Franchise For The Next Decade – Adam Schultz, Sports Illustrated

A QB conundrum looms for the Commanders.

What the Washington Commanders do at the quarterback position over the offseason is going to make for interesting viewing.

Sam Howell showed his talents at times in his first year as the starter, but given Washington’s draft hand (hold the No. 2 pick), a chance has come along to potentially grab its next franchise quarterback.

North Carolina’s Drake Maye and LSU’s Jayden Daniels are the two who have popped up recently in various mock drafts. Either quarterback could be seen as an upgrade over Howell who threw for 3,946 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions as he led the Commanders to a 4-13 record.

With a new owner in Josh Harris and new general manager in Adam Peters, times are changing in Washington, and this time for the better.

While several holes in the Commanders’ roster need filling, one would imagine that the No. 1 priority for the new head coach is to figure out what to do with the quarterback position.

Is Howell the guy to lead this team into a new era? Or is it going to be a better decision to draft a young star like Daniels or Maye to be the face of a new and improved franchise?

One thing is starting to become clearer as the weeks go on, and it’s that Howell’s days as Washington starter are beginning to feel like they are over.

This means a new quarterback will be coming in. Just which way Washington goes in its search is going to be scrutinized as this decision could have long-lasting repercussions for the franchise.

Eagles center Jason Kelce: ‘I don’t know what’s going to happen for me’ next season – Olivia Reiner, The Philadelphia Inquirer

Despite retirement rumors, the future remains uncertain for the Eagles’ Jason Kelce.

BALTIMORE — Moments after the Kansas City Chiefs received their fourth AFC championship trophy in five years on stage at M&T Bank Stadium, tight end Travis Kelce sauntered across the field with his arm around Taylor Swift and found his older brother Jason.

As Travis clutched his brother in an embrace, he slapped him on the back, his hand landing on the unfamiliar fabric of a red and gold Hawaiian shirt. Jason, the 36-year-old Eagles center, left the shirt unbuttoned and wore a red T-shirt layered underneath emblazoned with Travis’ nickname “Big Yeti” in gold writing.

“You keep your shirt on this time or what?” Travis exclaimed.

“I mean, I did for right now,” Jason responded. “We’ll see how it goes.”

While processing the end to a lackluster Eagles season that included a wild-card playoff exit and mulling the future of his playing career, Jason has been along for the Chiefs’ postseason run in support of Travis. On Sunday, the latest stop was Baltimore, where the Chiefs pulled off a 17-10 victory over the Ravens to punch their ticket to the Super Bowl.

“As a Philadelphia Eagle, incredibly disappointing season, especially at the end of it,” Jason told The Inquirer. “And I really, really look forward to next year. I look forward to trying to prove people wrong, especially with some of the recent hires and Nick Sirianni. And there’s a lot of things up in the air for the Philadelphia Eagles. But I think that, as a player, you always look forward to go into battle with your guys.

At the same time, the player in Jason was taken by the emotion of the moment on the field. He has experienced his share of division titles, most recently last season when the Eagles defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game. For Jason, those moments shared with teammates on the cusp of the Super Bowl don’t get old.

“You watch this and the emotion is so high,” Kelce said. “It feels so great being here on this field right now for your teammates and for the guys that are going to get an opportunity to compete for a Super Bowl. These are emotions. And these are situations that you don’t get unless you continue to go.

“And I don’t know what’s going to happen for me. But I do know, I still want to be involved in the organization and still want to be a part of it, regardless of what the decision is. Because I don’t want to ever feel like I’m on the outside looking in on these achievements and these accolades and these opportunities that largely represent entire cities and fan bases and organizations. It’s too good a feeling to pass up.”