War Without Death: A Year of Extreme Competition in Pro Football's NFC East

One of the better books on pro football that I've read. While it's true, little of the information is new to those who followed the NFC during the 2006 season, it's still a great read for the memories and the little stuff. I like how it bounced back and forth between individual team issues at particular times i.e. the draft, free agency, particular games on their schedule to whole league issues -- the labour agreement and revenue sharing. It allowed the reader to get into the season without getting bogged down in too many details that would made it too dense of a read. I like the discussion of the salary cap -- especially how the players' salaries are counted against the cap and how there is wiggle room within the cap to make moves. Interesting to see Parcells' take on TO and Vanderjagt - yes the author didn't like Dallas but with Dallas playing at the Meadowlands, I got *my* Parcells from the days of him here with LT, Simms, etc. Interesting to see how frequently some of these issues come up and now a year + into Goodell's tenure as commissioner and with the recent death of Upshaw.

Few divisions in all of sports are as storied as the National Football League's NFC East Division. The Dallas Cowboys. The New York (football) Giants. The Washington Redskins. The Philadelphia Eagles. Together they own a quarter of the NFL's Super Bowl championships (ten) and have been the team of many legendary football players. The competition in the division is highly regarded as the toughest not only in the NFL, but in all of sports. Mark Maske took the opportunity to chronicle a year in the life of the NFC East in the book, War Without Death. War Without Death: A Year of Extreme Competition in Pro Football's NFC East is exactly what the title says it is. The storyline of the 2006 calendar year for the NFC East is divided into three sections. And instead of giving you just the game recaps from the NFL season, the reader is put right in the thick of things from the coach's office, to the owner's box, to the draft rooms, and the player's homes. You start off right in Oakland at the end of the 2005 NFL season, where the New York Giants had clinched the 2005 NFC East division in January. Stories of the legendary Mara family, owners of the Giants, are told and signify how special things were in the organization, as well as documenting the emotions of the Cowboys, Redskins, and Eagles. Maske tells the story more from the angle of the owners of the clubs than anyone else. Dan Snyder comes off as a rich man who is looking for his next buck. Jerry Jones comes off as a man wanting his Cowboys to be "America's Team". John Mara comes off as a man who wants to respect the history of the Giants and NFL, as well as wanting to ensure the Giants mean something in the league. And Jeffery Lurie comes off as the owner who wants to be successful but wants to do it smartly, rather than being the over spender. Each personality is represented just as they appear to be in real life. The three sections of the book are "The Planning", "The Build Up", and "The Payoff". Each section progresses through the year starting with the end of the 2005 season. In the first section the reader learns what each club is thinking coming off the end of the 2005 NFL season, coaching changes, free agents, and looking forward to the draft. "The Build Up" is all about the second half of the off season as the reader learns how the draft unfolds, the legacies of the owners and general managers that are defined by free agency and drafts, and the wonderful world of training camps. "The Payoff" takes the reader through the up and down 2006 season, all of the division lead changes, the national exposure games, and the eventual playoff match-ups. There are so many plot lines that are followed through out the entire book. One to pay attention too is the story of Adam Archuleta, a free agent who decided to sign with the Redskins for more money as opposed to going to Chicago, where he could play in a system that better suited him and was close to his old home. Archuleta tells Maske just how feel

As an avid reader of the Washington Post, Mark Maske's "NFL Insider" is one of the most interesting, lively and to the point columns. While the book delves into behind-the-scenes nuts and bolts, it is Mark's personal profiles that are the most interesting to read. His writing conveys a particularly human touch to the NFL's bigger than life characters and that definitely comes shining through in this book. Interesting reading!