Commanders

Commanders DT Jer’Zhan Newton recorded three sacks of Cowboys QB Dak Prescott in a single game and told reporters he is still riding the high from the performance, one he plans to build on in his third season.

“That’s a big confidence boost, for sure… I’ve had that feeling since Christmas,” Newton said, via the team’s website. “I’ve always been that way, though. I’ve always been confident in myself, but definitely after that game, I feel like nobody can mess with me.”

Cowboys

Cowboys HC Brian Schottenheimer admitted that if he wasn’t hired as the head coach in Dallas this offseason, he likely would have decided to move on to be an offensive coordinator for another team.

“When [the Cowboys] decided to make the decision to move on from [head coach] Mike McCarthy, my plans were: I was going someplace else to be a coordinator. But God had a different plan. There’s a process, right? I wasn’t sure, and there was a number of other teams- I’m saying this very humbly- that were courting me and trying to say, ‘Hey, we want you to come be our coordinator,'” Schottenheimer said, via CowboysWire.com. “And after just talking it over with Stephen and Jerry, was like, ‘Okay, while we figure this out and you guys go through the interview process’ … we had made an agreement that I would stay here no matter what.”

“Dak was a huge part of me getting this job,” Schottenheimer added on QB Dak Prescott being instrumental in his return. “Dak believed in me and talked to Jerry and Will McClay and those guys and was just singing my praises.”

Giants

Giants first-year defensive backs coach Addison Lynch commented on CB Deonte Banks, who is currently listed as the fourth cornerback on the depth chart despite being a former first-round pick back in 2023. The team opted to decline his fifth-year option, and he will have to prove himself in 2025.

“He has the intangibles,” Lynch told the New York Post. “You see it in his body. He’s big, he’s fast, he can tackle, he can jump, he can catch. So it’s my job to put him in the best positions to be able to bring those intangibles out all the time. Mama and daddy gave him a lot of skills, so my job is to make mama and daddy’s skill set shine on the field on Sundays.”

“We tried to show him that his consistency was his deal,” Lynch added. “He just wasn’t consistent getting lined up fast, wasn’t consistent with his feet. He’s improved his consistency, so now his play is improved, now his confidence is up and he can just roll into the season. I love how he’s handling it. Right now, he’s being an absolute pro. He’s doing the extra work, he’s in his book, he’s doing everything we ask him. He’s making plays on the ball and he’s doing a really good job handling himself play in and play out. He’s made major improvements that when he’s tired, he relies on his technique and he’s getting more technical sound, so everything with him is trending in the right direction.”

“Yeah, I know Banks,” Giants DC Dennard Wilson responded when asked about the former Maryland prospect. “I remember evaluating him coming out. He’s a Maryland Terp, and I’m a Maryland Terp. I had just a little bit of background with him. He’s a talented player. He’s big. He can run. He brings an element of physicality, but he’s had an up-and-down career thus far.”