Cowboys

Dallas hired Christian Parker as DC from the Eagles to take over a defense that ranked dead-last in EPA per play in 2025. Parker was asked if he’s comfortable with the title of defensive coordinator/franchise savior, to which he downplayed the latter because it’s never about just one person.

“The first one, yes,” Parker said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “Because that’s what I do. The second one, no. Because it’s about the collective (group) and I think that we’re all equally responsible for that, for the good and the bad. I’m just trying to do my part.”

Communication has been a buzzword for Parker thus far in the offseason, as he was heard repeating the command “over communicate” when sending plays in to the defense. Parker explained the emphasis on communication and touched on the added responsibilities as a first time defensive coordinator.

“If you’re in a position of communication and you’re commanding and you’re responsible for checks and things we have to do, that’s what you have to do. Whether you say a thousand words outside of these walls or two, it doesn’t matter. When we’re on that grass, it’s a premium.”

“It’s been good. Obviously it’s a lot, it’s an increase in responsibility. It’s an increase in even my communication. … Everything has been great in terms of the communication. There are very clear expectations of what I need to do and what the staff needs to do.”

Eagles

Eagles EDGE Jonathan Greenard enters his first season in Philadelphia after being acquired from the Vikings. Greenard is excited to line up alongside DTs Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis.

“I think about it all the time,” Greenard said, via Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports. “It’s going to be fun, man, because those are two guys who are selfless but also understand how much impact they can have on the game. I just told them when I got here, ‘Look, I feed off of y’all. I’m just going to let y’all do y’all thing’ and I’ll eventually obviously read and see how they like to play vs. certain opponents. But I’m not here to slow y’all down.”

Greenard thinks Carter and Davis force offensive lines to adjust to them, which will benefit him as an edge rusher in the end. 

“Just knowing that those two guys who can just take and dominate the entire game, change the whole game plan, change the whole protection for slides and stuff like that,” Greenard said. “Having that as an advantage is going to be great as an edge guy. Every edge guy is going to tell you that. You got two guys like that inside pushing the pocket, just causing disruption, it makes our job a whole lot easier.”

Greenard mentioned that he watched a lot of film on both players and feels like he’s already developed chemistry with them. 

“I watched film of them a good bit,” Greenard said. “My first week here a couple weeks ago, we sat down as a unit and kind of talked about how we wanted to run certain games and what do they like to do, what’s their favorite moves and things of that sort, what’s my favorite moves and things of that sort. But yeah, we kind of worked it a little bit today, just trying to get on the same page, which is great. We’ve already got the chemistry. I already know how they’re going to play already. I just add what I’ve been doing already. I don’t really play like an unorthodox style. I can kind of fit into any scheme. But ultimately, man, those guys make my job easier. I don’t have to say much. They’re like, ‘Hey, listen, if I tell you to go, just go. I’ll clean up the rest.’ Or vice versa. I think that’s just that balance that we’re going to have. They understand what they can do, I understand what I can do. I think that when we put it all together, which we’re trying to do right now, I think it’s going to be good.”

Giants

Dan Duggan of The Athletic gave his prediction on the Giants’ 53-man roster following the conclusion of mandatory minicamp in early June.

• Duggan believes the Giants will keep just two QBs in Jaxson Dart and Jameis Winston, as he thinks they will try to keep QB Brandon Allen on the practice squad instead.
• At receiver, Duggan has JuJu Smith-Schuster, Braxton Berrios, Isaiah Hodgins and Jalin Hyatt among those not making the 53-man roster. He feels Odell Beckham Jr. will make the cut and believes Calvin Austin can handle return duties if they move on from Berrios.
• Duggan doesn’t believe there’s a path for TE Thomas Fidone II on the roster because of the foot injury that ended his rookie season early, but thinks he could develop on the practice squad.
• On the offensive line, Duggan says the starting lineup is locked in as follows: Andrew Thomas, Jon Runyan, John Michael Schmitz Jr., Francis Mauigoa and Jermaine Eluemunor.
• Duggan says Lucas Patrick is the favorite to be the backup center, but durability concerns could create opportunities for Bryan Hudson.
• At inside linebacker, Duggan thinks they could keep just four in Tremaine Edmunds, Arvell Reese, Micah McFadden and Jack Kelly, but he also has Darius Muasau making the team over Zaire Barnes for special teams purposes.
• Duggan calls Deonte Banks‘ ascension to being a legitimate option at starting corner “the biggest surprise of the spring,” but admits he needs to show more consistency to win the job over Greg Newsome. Duggan expects Dru Phillips to be the starting slot corner, while Art Green has a good chance to make it for special teams.
• Finally, Duggan says Jevon Holland and Tyler Nubin are the unquestioned starters at safety, but believes Ar’Darius Washington could eventually challenge for a starting job. Duggan has Elijah Campbell as one of the last to make the roster, but admitted he could be replaced by a third quarterback or a special teams player at another position.