NFC Notes: Cowboys, Packers, Saints, Vikings

Cowboys

• Alex Marvez reports that the Cowboys have hired Paul Alexander as their new offensive line coach.

Packers

• Michael Cohen reports that Packers CB Damarious Randall is undergoing minor surgery on his hand Monday in New York. According to Cohen, Randall played through an issue related to a small bone his hand all season.
• Adam Schefter adds that Randall will need six-to-eight weeks to recover from this procedure, which means he should be fine for offseason workouts.

Saints

Following Sunday’s devasting loss to the Vikings, Saints rookie S Marcus Williams explained what happened on the final play when he missed the tackle on WR Stefon Diggs.

“It was just my play to make. The ball was in the air; I didn’t go attack it,” Williams said, via the Advocate. “I’ve just got to be that guy, go up and get the ball. As the safety back there, you’ve got to be the eraser. That was my job. The last play of the game, you’ve got to go do it, and you’ve got to save the game.”

Williams said he was a little early on the play, but he still has to make that play.

“I feel like I was a little early, but at that point, I’ve just got to make the tackle when he comes down,” Williams said. “It’s just those little things that you see, and you’ve got to make sure you do all that you can to get him down, regardless of if there were 10 seconds left. I knew the situation. You’ve just got to make sure you make the play.”

According to Williams, he’s going to do everything he can to overcome that mistake.

“Just overcome it,” Williams said. “You can’t let it beat you down. I’m going to take it upon myself to do all I can to never let that happen again, and if it happens again, then I shouldn’t be playing.”

Vikings

• Vikings HC Mike Zimmer explained the decision to make Sam Bradford the team’s backup quarterback and have Teddy Bridgewater inactive by saying: “Shamar Stephen was a little banged up, so I needed an extra defensive lineman and Bradford played great against this team in the past, so that’s why I thought about it.” (Courtney Cronin)
• Regarding the knee injury sustained by DT Shamar Stephen, Adam Caplan reports that the early word is that this is not ACL related. Although, they’ve scheduled more tests to determine the severity of the injury.