NFC Notes: Cowboys, Eagles, Jalen Hurts, Giants

Cowboys

Cowboys first-round LB Micah Parsons called DE DeMarcus Lawrence a dynamic edge rusher and is glad he’s back from a foot injury. 

“He’s one of the best edge rushers in the NFL,” Parsons said, via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. “He’s dynamic. The energy he brings to the table is great. We’re all very, very happy to have him back.”

• Cowboys’ HC Mike McCarthy applauded the effort of the team’s running backs, with RB Tony Pollard averaging over ten yards per carry in their win over the Saints on Thursday night: “Running the football, offensively, helps the whole football team and that’s something that I think you can lose sight of. You don’t want to be a stat offense. We need regularity and consistency in both running the football and stopping the run… You need these wins. You need adversity opportunities and experiences. December football, that’s always what it comes down to because that’s the launching pad you have to come off of to be a playoff team and to excel in the playoffs.” (Jon Machota)

Eagles

• Ian Rapoport reports that Eagles’ QB Jalen Hurts could miss Sundays’ game against the Jets due to an ankle injury, saying his status is “up in the air” and that the team could wind up playing backup QB Gardner Minshew after Hurts tests his ankle pre-game.
• Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Eagles owner Jeffery Lurie still believes in QB Jalen Hurts while GM Howie Roseman’s “assessment is less confident.“
• McLane writes that the Eagles may have no choice but to go with Hurts in 2022, as there isn’t expected to be a top quarterback prospect in next year’s draft.
• According to McLane, Lurie advocated for drafting Hurts last year.

Giants

Giants WR Kenny Golladay said there’s been improved communication between the players and coaches under offensive assistant and interim OC Freddie Kitchens. 

“It’s huge. You can come over to the sideline and actually, since you’re the one out there running, you can actually tell them what you’re seeing,” Golladay said, via GiantsWire. “It’s one thing running it on the field and a coach standing on the sideline trying to get all the way on the other side of the field. Just going in there and giving them good information, and not giving them selfish information.”

Kitchens stressed that it is important to make sure players are comfortable with what plays are being called. 

“You need to get a sense and feel for what they’re comfortable with. To me, why would you call something, and this is the way our staff believes, why would you call something if a player’s not comfortable running it? It’s your job to get them comfortable running it,” Kitchen said. “If you think it’s a good scheme or a good play or whatever the case may be, it’s your job to get them comfortable doing it. But if you can’t get them to that point, it’s kind of diminishing returns.”

Kitchens added that discovering their game plan required “constant communication” between coaches and players. 

“I think this is a never-ending process. It’s constant communication. That’s what we try to stress is it’s communication between coach and coach, coach and player, player to coach. It’s always constant communication, so I wouldn’t put a number on it. So I think it’s always a continual process.”