NFC Notes: Eagles, Giants, Washington

Eagles

• In an interview on 97.5 The Fanatic, ESPN’s Adam Schefter says it’s noteworthy that Eagles QB Carson Wentz has refused to speak publicly since being benched and he thinks it’s because he still wants out of Philadelphia: “That’s why the trade is still in play. And just because he would like to be moved, doesn’t mean he will be.”
• NBC Sports’ Reuben Frank thinks a new coaching staff should be good for Eagles WR Travis Fulgham, who seemed to fall into former HC Doug Pederson‘s doghouse for what the coach alluded to were poor practice habits. 
• Chiefs HC Andy Reid said he never got a formal interview request from the Eagles for OC Eric Bieniemy. (Zack Rosenblatt)

Giants

Giants RB Saquon Barkley is eligible for a contract extension for the first time this offseason. Had Barkley stayed healthy and turned in the type of year he and the team were expecting, odds are he’d have been seriously looking at the largest running back deal in NFL history. But a torn ACL injected some uncertainty into the process, and Barkley’s focusing on that before he worries about his contract. 

“To be honest, that’s the least of my worries,” Barkley said via Pro Football Talk. “That’s not even on my mind right now to even have that conversation, spark that conversation up. I’m really just focusing on getting this knee ready because I want to be the best player I can be.”

• The Giants will interview assistant OL coach Ben Wilkerson for the primary OL coach job. (Jordan Raanan)
• The Falcons hired Giants assistant strength and conditioning coach Thomas Stallworth as their new head strength coach. (Kimberley Martin)

Washington

• Per Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post, new Washington GM Martin Mayhew said he and senior executive Marty Hurney‘s roles are “very loosely defined.” Hurney added: “The only thing that matters to us is to win games.”
• Mayhew said the two of them will set the table for HC Ron Rivera to make all the final decisions. (JP Finlay)
• Washington promoted Eric Stokes to senior director of player personnel. (Jhabvala)
• He’ll assist the leadership trio of Rivera, Mayhew and Hurney, per Hurney: “Philosophically all three of us are on the same page … and Eric Stokes as well.” (Jhabvala)
• The top challenge for Washington is finding a quarterback of the future. They were reportedly involved in trade talks for Matthew Stafford and Mayhew says they’ll continue to look “very thoroughly” at the position, though he mentioned being “extremely impressed” by what Alex Smith and Taylor Heinicke did in 2020. (Finlay)
• Mayhew added Washington will be “smart and aggressive” while Hurney added they didn’t want to “mortgage the future.” (Finlay)
• Rivera elaborated that Washington didn’t want to “get into a situation where we can’t put playmakers around our guy. We want to be able to protect our guy. That’s something we have to make sure we can do.” (John Keim)
• Rivera said Washington could even wait until 2022 to find the final answer at the position, though that doesn’t mean they will: “We’ve got to make sure we find the right one. Is it imperative to find right now? Not necessarily, but we’d like to.” (Finlay)
• Asked specifically about former QB Cam Newton, Rivera said “nothing is off the table.” (Finlay)