The NFL is a constantly changing landscape, with teams evolving from year to year with new players, coaches, and schemes on both sides of the ball. With so many factors in play at a given time, one success story or slip-up could be the difference between doom and gloom for every team in the league. The same philosophy can be applied to Madden as well, as one player not doing their job correctly can spell disaster for the entire team.
Today, we’ll be continuing our series of selecting one “make or break” player from every team in the NFL (read more about our AFC East Team breadkdown in Madden 26). This player isn’t usually going to be the superstar of a team, but they’re going to be integral to the team’s success on the field. If they perform, the team has a solid chance of doing well, but if they falter, then their squad could be looking at a failed season.
This series is broken up into divisions, and since we’ve already covered the AFC East, it’s time to dive into the NFC East. You can see each team’s make or break player and why we chose that player below.
DE Jalen Carter, Philadelphia Eagles
Let’s start with the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles got revenge on the Kansas City Chiefs last season, but certainly paid a hefty price for their hardware in the offseason. Philly lost a number of key players that were crucial to the team’s Super Bowl run, including several players on defense.
This includes DT Milton Williams and DE Josh Sweat, both of whom played major roles in dismantling the Chiefs’ offense in February. With that in mind, our make or break player for the Eagles in 2025 is defensive end Jalen Carter. Carter is now tasked with leading the entire defensive line and building on the production he has achieved in his first two seasons. However, the only difference now is that he won’t be surrounded by superstar talent to make up for any shortcomings.
If Jalen Carter can continue to improve his production and become an anchor for the D-line, then the Eagles should have no issues competing in the NFC East and the entire conference. Of course, there’s also the scenario where Carter regresses, and that might be the difference between the Eagles repeating as division champs and succumbing to the upstart Washington Commanders.
LT Laremy Tunsil, Washington Commanders
Speaking of the Washington Commanders, let’s tackle them next. The Commanders got oh so close to the Super Bowl in rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels’ first season. While Daniels is, of course, the most important player on the Commanders, there are a number of players around him that could make his sophomore season far more difficult than it needs to be.
The number one player that could affect Daniels and the entire Commanders offense, though, is new left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Tunsil was acquired from the Texans in the offseason and immediately slides in as the team’s new left tackle, protecting the blindside of Daniels. While Tunsil is a potential Hall of Famer thanks to his illustrious career so far, he did have a down year in 2024 while protecting C.J. Stroud. The Commanders are hoping and praying that this was a fluke, and Tunsil can return to being a concrete wall along the offensive line.
There remains a possibility where that doesn’t happen, though. In that case, the Commanders’ outlook on 2025 looks much different. While Daniels should be able to continue his success he saw in 2024, constant pressure from his blindside will only hinder his ability to build off last season. We’ve seen so many cases of sophomore quarterbacks regressing from their rookie seasons, and Tunsil needs to be at his best to ensure Daniels isn’t another repeat of RGIII for the Commanders.
WR George Pickens, Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys made a splashy move in the offseason, trading for disgruntled Steelers receiver George Pickens. Pickens had his fair share of issues in Pittsburgh, but one thing was made perfectly clear: he’s a game-changer at the receiver position. With All-Pro CeeDee Lamb manning the slot position, Pickens slides in perfectly on the outside, giving quarterback Dak Prescott a consistent downfield threat.
If the pairing of Lamb and Pickens works out, Dallas could have one of the top receiver duos in the NFL. Teams will have to pick their poison between the two, and the one that isn’t guarded as heavily could deal some serious damage. We’ve seen how a similar pairing of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle has worked out in Miami, and if Dallas can manage to harness Pickens’ true potential, the Cowboys could prove a lot of people wrong in 2025.
That’s just one side of the coin, though. The other side is that Pickens’ on-field issues from Pittsburgh follow him to Dallas, and he causes major rifts on offense. Pickens is the definition of a high risk, high reward player, and the Cowboys really don’t need the “high risk” version of the receiver.
QB Russell Wilson, New York Giants
We’ve finally arrived at the ever-changing reality show that is the New York Giants. Every season, the Giants have some kind of drama that unfolds, and in 2025, all eyes will be on new quarterback Russell Wilson. Wilson was signed to be a stop-gap quarterback for the Giants as rookie QB Jaxson Dart gets ready to (hopefully) take over the position.
However, if Wilson can manage to return to being a competent quarterback, New York could win some games, especially with a new-look defense that features top rookie prospect Abdul Carter. While Wilson isn’t necessarily set up for success in the Giants’ offense, he has shown flashes of his former self in the past couple of years. If all goes well for Wilson and the Giants, he performs well enough to keep the team in playoff contention and gives Dart a full year to learn under him before taking the reins in 2026.
Let’s face it, though, the Wilson signing has a likelier chance of going south for New York. If Wilson shows that he just doesn’t have what it takes to be an NFL quarterback anymore, then that could force the Giants’ hand and make them bring in Dart before he might be ready. While that could be a blessing in disguise if Dart flourishes as QB1, there’s also the scenario where Dart performs poorly and hurts his confidence moving forward. That would be a disaster for a Giants team that has been looking for consistent quarterback play since the days of Eli Manning.
So, there are definitely a few ways for the Wilson situation to play out in New York, making him perhaps the biggest make or break player in the entire NFL. There’s a chance that him performing poorly leads to a better result for the Giants if Dart is the real deal, but that’s a massive “if.”
That wraps up this edition of our make or break series. Do you think we left anyone off the list? Let us know down in the comments below.
