NFC Notes: Cowboys, Giants, Washington

Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs‘ mother, Stephanie Diggs, recalled assuring her son that he would be as successful as his older brother Stefon Diggs. 

“Early on I knew (Trevon) was special, so I reassured him,” said Stephanie. “I was like, ‘You know what, you’re going to be better than Stefon.’ I said that to him early on and put him in a mindset that (Stefon’s success) is attainable, too.”

Stephanie Diggs mentioned that Trevon felt the need to switch positions from receiver to cornerback while he played at Alabama under Nick Saban. 

“I really didn’t want to talk to him,” said Stephanie. “I was kind of upset. But Nick Saban is a tremendous coach. … The joke was if you’re going to go to Alabama you’re not going to get on the field until your senior year. But (Trevon) wanted to get on the field, so I guess he was interested in switching to the position so he could make an impact earlier.”

Former Alabama and currently Vikings DBs coach Karl Scott said Diggs had an “instinctual” feel for playing defensive back given his background as a receiver. 

“You could tell that he had an offensive background,” Scott said. “Just understanding route schemes, concepts, how receivers are trying to stem you on certain routes and whatnot. He just had a natural feel for that — and he was instinctual. A lot of times you say you move a receiver to DB because he can’t catch, but it was the total opposite with him. Total opposite.”

• Cowboys’ RB Ezekiel Elliott is expected to start Sunday against the Giants while wearing a knee brace for the second straight game. (Michael Gehlken)
• Cowboys’ WR Amari Cooper on QB Dak Prescott shouldering the blame for the team’s performances: “That’s typically how it works. When we’re doing good, he gets all the praise. When we’re doing bad, he gets all the blame. At the end of the day, it’s a team game, no matter which way you swing it.” (Jon Machota)

Giants

• The Giants are expecting LB Jaylon Smith to play Sunday against the Cowboys even though he was just signed to the practice squad on Friday. (Ed Werder)
• Art Stapleton reports that the Giants are waiting on test results to see if S Xavier McKinney will be able to play this week against the Cowboys.

Washington

• Washington LB Khaleke Hudson and DE James Smith-Williams could possibly be available this Tuesday now that their 10-day isolation periods are coming to an end. (Nicki Jhabvala)
• Washington S Landon Collins on remaining with the team when his current deal comes to an end: “I would love to stay here within the role that I’m playing in, and if they love me. I love being here. This is where I wanted to be drafted to when I first got into the NFL. So yeah, I would love to be here.” (Jhabvala)
• Washington DE Montez Sweat is expected to play this Tuesday against the Eagles after reportedly being the cause for the COVID-19 outbreak on the team. (Josh Tolentino)
• Jeremy Fowler reports that Washington believes QB Kyle Allen has a good chance to play against the Eagles now that the game has been moved to Tuesday.
• Washington DT Jonathan Allen spoke to the media about his time on the COVID-19 list: “It was frustrating because it was the worst time of the season. We’re getting into divisional play now and just to know that I possibly might not be out there, that was kind of the worst part about it.” (Nicki Jhabvala)
• Allen also fielded questions on if it was fair to move the game to Tuesday: “That’s a loaded question. As a player on Washington, yeah I’m glad they did it. I’m sure Philly has different opinions. … It’s about what the league thinks is best….. It’s not up to us. It’s not my job to worry about that.” (Ben Standig)