NFC Notes: Cowboys, Giants, Washington

Cowboys

• Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said OT La’el Collins is out for Sunday with the final game of his suspension despite Collins’ efforts to overturn it: “Frankly, I do not have anything that’s worth noting that would indicate otherwise.” (Michael Gehlken)
• Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy doesn’t believe the back injury sustained by RB Ezekiel Elliott after he landed on the pylon will cause him to miss any time. “He’s sore, but I don’t see it being an issue as far as him playing this week.” (Jon Machota)
• Cowboys DC Dan Quinn said that CB Trevon Diggs “really had a tough week.” Diggs had pink eye and still practiced: “It really shows this is a true competitor. …Don’t confuse that quiet demeanor. This is a true wolf in sheep’s clothing. This guy is a rare competitor.” (Gehlken)
• Quinn called DE Randy Gregory “one of our most consistent players”, and praised his versatility: “He just stays relentless. We played him outside. We played him inside.” (Gehlken)

Giants

• NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reports Giants WR Kenny Golladay is expected to miss Sunday with his knee injury, but it’s not believed to be a long-term issue.
• Giants HC Joe Judge said that QB Daniel Jones is in the concussion protocol and the team will “wait patiently” for his return. The team is also optimistic that OT Andrew Thomas will be able to return vs. the Rams. (Art Stapleton)
• Judge said the team “dodged a bullet” regarding injuries to RB Saquon Barkley and Golladay, who both avoided serious injury. (Stapleton)
• Judge wouldn’t admit that Barkley has a sprained ankle, but said that X-Rays came back “with better news than it could’ve been. A little bit of a sigh of relief.” Judge wouldn’t put a timetable on Barkley’s return. (Ralph Vacchiano)
• Giants first-round rookie WR Kadarius Toney appeared to injure his foot/ankle during the Giants’ loss to the Cowboys on Sunday and subsequently visited a doctor to determine the severity. “I don’t think it’s anything significant, in terms of season-ending,” Judge said, though Vacchiano points out that his status could be in doubt for this week. (Vacchiano)
• Toney said regarding his ejection during the Cowboys game for throwing a punch at a defender that “it was just a one-time thing. I’m a rookie making early mistakes. I just gotta learn from it and build off it.” Toney said that his actions were not in line with the example he wants to set for little kids. “We have to be accountable for our emotions and our actions.” (Zack Rosenblatt)

Washington

• One of the reasons the Washington defense has underperformed compared to expectations entering this season is the play of the linebacking corps. Washington went to a five DL/five DB lineup for a big chunk of Sunday’s loss to the Saints, and first-round LB Jamin Davis saw his snaps reduced heavily because of that.
• However, Washington HC Ron Rivera says they’re going to be looking to ease Davis back into the action, per the Athletic’s Ben Standig: “(Davis is) going to get his opportunities to play. It’s just, as we feel that he’s where he needs to be, we can expose him and give him an even bigger role.”
• Although Rivera pointed out Washington QB Taylor Heinicke is still relatively inexperienced in terms of game action, he acknowledged his two interceptions were throws that should not have been made: “Taylor forced some things to happen. Tried to make some things happen that he didn’t need to. … You don’t want him to feel like he has to make the big play all the time.”
• Rivera said he’s not going to interfere with the defensive game planning: “I’m involved enough to know…I trust our coordinators.” (JP Finlay)