Commanders

Commanders WR Deebo Samuel left Week 7 of last season with the 49ers and wound up being diagnosed with pneumonia. Samuel reflected on his recovery, saying he had to rebuild his lung capacity following his bout with the illness. 

“Your lungs are definitely weak, coming from pneumonia,” Samuel said, via Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic. “You’re starting over from scratch. I built up this capacity to be in shape and now my conditioning is gone. There were ups and downs, and I got through the season. But I didn’t feel like I had my wind back until the last two games, maybe.”

In addition to pneumonia, Samuel suffered a calf strain in Week 2 and dealt with a lingering wrist injury later on. Despite only missing two games last season, reports emerged that the receiver’s weight increased during his recovery. 

“The naysayers had to say something about it,” Samuel said. “We don’t pay attention to it, but we hear it.”

Commanders HC Dan Quinn said Samuel put in a lot of work to be physically and mentally ready for OC Kliff Kingsbury‘s system.

“You could tell he put the work in physically but also from the neck up, learning the new system,” Quinn said. “It is different than the system that he has been a part of. I thought he worked hard on that part. Maybe a silver lining is the extra time that he has now with Jayden.”

Commanders

• Commanders CB Bobby Price is in the concussion protocol after Friday’s preseason game against the Patriots. (Nicki Jhabvala)
• Commanders HC Dan Quinn on releasing LB Dominique Hampton: “If it’s not going to fit, we’d rather give him a chance to go somewhere else.” (JP Finlay)
• Quinn also spoke on signing LB Duke Riley: “We just thought it was time. … We just felt like we needed another player.” (Nicki Jhabvala)
• Commanders seventh-round RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt did not participate in the scrimmage on Tuesday after his minor shoulder issue from the preseason opener. (John Keim)

Cowboys

• Cowboys HC Brian Schottenheimer on WR George Pickens: “From the time we got George and we went in my office and spent some time together, shot some free throws and just talked and got to know each other, he made it very clear, he was like, ‘Coach, I’m thrilled to be here, No. 1. I want to be coached. I want to be great. … Lean into me. Be tough on me. Tell me the things I need to do.’ He’s been nothing but incredible in terms of the way he’s worked with us, the way he has communicated with us.” (Jon Machota)
• Schottenheimer said LT Tyler Guyton has been getting reps during their mock practices: “The slow speed stuff, because he needs that mentally to kinda stay prepared. He’s doing well. Not putting a timeline on it, but I’ve been very pleased with what I’ve seen from him.” (Jon Machota)
• He continued: “The intensity that he’s attacking the rehab and the way he’s working is not normal for a second-year player. I’m very proud of him for that.” (Machota)