NFC Notes: Saquon Barkley, Brian Robinson, Commanders, Eagles, Giants

Commanders

Heading into their matchup against the Browns and DE Myles Garrett, Commanders RB Brian Robinson Jr. said he wasn’t going to shy away from the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. Robinson spoke on his attacking mindset regardless of who lines up opposite him.

“I attack, it really doesn’t matter,” Robinson said, via NFL Network. “I don’t see names, I don’t see colors. I just see jersey numbers and I just attack. When I see him in a hole, it’s me and him. May the best man win on that rep…..it may be him, it may be me. And we may meet several times and it’s going to be the same every time.”

Eagles

Regarding the Eagles’ offensive struggles, OC Kellen Moore feels they haven’t been starting games strong enough and are examining many things to correct during their bye week. 

“Yeah, we haven’t started games the way we’ve wanted to,” Moore said, via NFL.com. “This week being a bye week, we are just doing such a deep dive on so many things. This is a really fun for us to task to navigate and find a way to get going sooner, get going quicker because there are moments coming out of second halves we’ve had successful drives. But we’ve got to start faster, so that’s a big focus for us just to continue to evaluate that and find our way.”

Moore thinks he needs to build better rhythm as a play-caller while being more efficient in the red zone and on third downs. 

“We’re all not where we want to be. That’s part of it. So, we are excited about where we can take this thing,” Moore said. “Ultimately, I think from a rhythm and a timing standpoint, I think for us, we’ve just got to continue to grow and evolve with that. It starts with me as far as play calling, sequencing, building better rhythm as an offense. I think we’ve moved it fine for the most part. The stats will tell you we’re moving it okay. We’ve just got to finish in the red zone. We’ve got to put ourselves in more manageable and cleaner third-down situations. That goes back to first and second down. I think we’ve got some great opportunities to grow because there is some production there, and we’re excited where we can take this thing.”

Moore wants to get RB Saquon Barkley involved “as much as possible” and points out that getting behind in Week 4’s loss to the Buccaneers resulted in them playing “catchup ball.”

“Yeah, want to get the ball to Saquon as much as possible, just like a lot of these guys,” Moore said. “A poor job just finding the rhythm in that game to go three and out, three and out, and three and out, and then putting yourself in a challenging position where you’re going to have to play catchup ball for the rest of the game, and you still don’t want to lose the run game. You still want to try to keep it alive. We’ve got to get him more touches.”

• When appearing on This Is Football with Kevin Clark, Albert Breer said the Eagles could be an intriguing fit for former Patriots HC Bill Belichick if they move on from Nick Sirianni because of his relationship with GM Howie Roseman, while there is somewhat of a rivalry between Eagles’ owner Jeffrey Lurie and Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft. 
• Eagles LB Nakobe Dean was fined $7,886 for Unnecessary Roughness (hip drop tackle), and RB Kenneth Gainwell was fined $6,327 for Unnecessary Roughness (low block) in Week 4.

Giants

Giants CB Deonte Banks had a rough performance in Week 4 including a play where he seemed to ease up despite not being out of it. New York assistant coach Jerome Henderson talked about his displeasure with that play and how he wants defenders attacking.

“Didn’t like it,” Henderson said, via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post. “Liked nothing about it.”

“When your man catches a ball, you have to break your legs — not literally, but figuratively — to get him on the ground. I thought there was room to do more. We expect it from him and he expects it from himself, but in that moment he failed.”

Banks admitted he could’ve done more but won’t let it hinder him going forward.

“It was a bad finish by me,” Banks said. “After I saw the film, I didn’t really feel it in the game. But I could have definitely finished more. I maybe could have even tackled him. But we’re passed it now.”