NFC Notes: Commanders, Cowboys, Eagles, A.J. Brown

Commanders

Commanders HC Ron Rivera said CB Benjamin St-Juste has the ability to cover larger receivers and line up on the outside. 

“Pretty excited about him,” Rivera said, via CommandersWire. “He’s come back, he looks healthy, he’s working hard, he’s growing, developing, and learning. I’m real appreciative of that. There are some things that you can do with a big corner in the slot when they put a big receiver in the slot, so those are some things we have to look at. Because, again, it’s going to be about matching, and you want to make sure you have the right body type on the right type of a player that’s in there. So that’s kind of what the thought is there. He will play on the outside as well, but we have to be able to say, ‘Hey, we can put a big guy there.’”

Cowboys

• In response to Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence saying he wants to lead the team in sacks again, LB Micah Parsons said that he’s determined to continue as the sack leader: “I’m sorry to tell him he’s never getting that back… He can be a 10-sack guy. Great. But if 10’s the number, I’m going for 20.” (Jori Epstein)
• Joel Corry of CBS Sports believes that Cowboys TE Dalton Schultz and Dolphins TE Mike Gesicki are next in line for a big payday following the contract the Browns gave to TE David Njoku.

Eagles

Eagles’ new WR A.J. Brown thinks lining up opposite of WR DeVonta Smith will help take pressure off of each other given defenses must decide who to use their No. 1 cornerbacks against. 

“It takes the pressure off the other guy. Say we’re playing [the Eagles’ defense], I’d probably take [Darius] Slay, because he’s cornerback No. 1 and I’d go against him,” Brown said, via ProFootballTalk. “And that gives another really talented receiver [the chance] to go against a cornerback No. 2. So it takes pressure [off]. In my opinion, Smitty is a wide receiver 1, and he’s going against a cornerback No. 2, I expect Smitty to dominate, you know? So, just taking pressure off each other. And even being on the same side, so you can’t really double — that’s great having another great wideout beside you.”

Brown praised Smith’s route-running ability and is excited about his potential going into the second year of his career. 

“He’s a really good route runner. Guys early on in their career — first year, Year Two – they’re still developing. And he can run every route in the route tree,” Brown said. “So it’s just a few [nuances], little things that we all can get better at and then just keep tuning up our game and keep developing. I think the sky is the limit for Smitty. I’m excited for him in Year Two, I’m excited [for] the step he takes.”