NFC Notes: Cowboys, Eagles, Washington

Cowboys

• According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Cowboys RT La’el Collins believes he has valid reasons for all of the drug tests he missed that triggered his five-game suspension and is appealing the decision. 
• One test came on the day Cowboys strength coach Markus Paul had a heart attack and died at the team facility, another came on the day of Collins’ uncle’s funeral in Arizona when he had an excused absence from the team and the third came on the day Collins had hip surgery last October. 
• Per Schefter, Collins has not tested positive for marijuana in the past 18 months. His representatives also don’t believe the new CBA allows the league to suspend players for missing tests. 
• Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy commented on S Malik Hooker ahead of his debut with the team: “Malik’s had a really good week of practice. I think it really started last week. You could see he’s comfortable with what we’re asking him do. I think he’s clearly back physically.” (Jon Machota)

Eagles

• Ian Rapoport reports that Eagles’ RG Brandon Brooks is believed to have suffered an injury to his pectoral muscle and will undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury.
• Eagles’ HC Nick Sirianni on the season-ending injury suffered by veteran DE Brandon Graham: “Obviously with Brandon Graham, we’re fearful of what it might be. We don’t know for sure, so I don’t know for sure yet. But obviously, we’re concerned. …We’re fearful, but I don’t want to say what it is for now.” (Zach Berman)
• According to Pro Football Talk, Eagles DE Josh Sweat‘s new three-year, $41 million extension includes a $10 million signing bonus. He’s scheduled to make base salaries of $920,000, $1.035 million, $12 million and $13.75 million from 2021-2024. 
• Sweat has a $2.965 million fully guaranteed option bonus in 2022. His base salaries in 2021 and 2022 are guaranteed and $9 million of his 2023 base becomes guaranteed in 2022. The rest of his 2023 base salary guarantees that year. 
• The deal includes workout bonuses of $250,000 in 2021 and 2022 and a $2 million escalator in 2024 if Sweat gets seven sacks in each of the next three years, nine sacks in two of the next three years, or 11 sacks in any one of the next three years.

Washington

Washington HC Ron Rivera chalked up the team’s defensive errors against the Giants to miscommunication.

“It’s correctable. Just a lack of discipline a couple of times,” Rivera said, via Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post. “We went diving down inside on the play-action where we shouldn’t have been. That’s frustrating because we prepared for it. It was something that we’ve seen in the past. Jones has exploited that in the past. He did it last week, and he did it again this week, so that’s disappointing. That will be pointed out, and we’re going to work to correct it because, honestly, it’s something that’s very frustrating for us as coaches and I know for the players.”