NFC Notes: Saquon Barkley, Daniel Jones, Cowboys, Eagles, Giants

Cowboys

Dallas fell to 3-7 after losing 34-10 to the Texans at home in Week 11. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones believes the bad times are inevitable for everyone and doesn’t feel HC Mike McCarthy has lost the locker room.

“We won one game my first year,” Jones said, via ESPN’s Todd Archer. “One. And so have we had rough seasons? Yes. Yeah, I’ve been around. Certainly, we have. And we’ve had other tough years. And this one, we didn’t anticipate the record. And the way we’re playing right now, we wouldn’t have anticipated that. But, not, this isn’t — y’all have heard me tell these old stories until you’re sick — but not, you stay in this league long enough, you’ll have times like this.”

“That losing the team stuff, that’s so overblown. These guys are so, first of all, they’re natural competitors. Secondly, they’re so proud of the fact that they are professional and disappointed in maybe the way they executed the play, but that’s not anything that’s brother or first cousin to give up. … Everybody’s certainly disappointed, but that’s a big difference in not knowing that you got to put the foot in front of the other to go.”

Eagles

Eagles RB Saquon Barkley has missed out on a good amount of touchdowns after being tackled at the one followed by a sneak from QB Jalen Hurts. Philadelphia HC Nick Sirianni talked about the risk-reward options with the QB sneak as the reason Hurts gets so many chances near the endzone. 

“You always think about that. I think one thing we think about a lot in the red zone … a quarterback sneak, it’s tough to lose yardage there,” Sirianni said, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com. “So when you come out, the worst thing you can do in red zone football is move backwards. That’s one the worst things that can happen there and put you behind the sticks. You always want to stay ahead of the sticks because things get harder and tighter down there as you move down in there.”

“He’s getting us down there, yes. He’s got eight touchdowns, and [we’re] excited for him on that. He’s playing at a high, high level. But I think Saquon is a great teammate.”

• Eagles DT Jalen Carter notably played in 100 percent of their defensive snaps in Week 11’s win over the Commanders. DC Vic Fangio doesn’t think it’s a big deal for Carter to appear in every play given he was already at a 90 percent clip going into the game: “He’s been playing a lot, anyway. What the hell is the difference between 90 percent and 100 percent? I mean, geez. Just that he’s been able to do it for the most part, and he’s ready for it.” (Zach Berman)

Giants

• Jordan Schultz reports some players around the Giants have been disappointed by how the team has handled Daniel Jones being benched this week with players aware it was “primarily a financial decision.” 
• One offensive player confirmed to Schultz that they are upset about Jones’ situation, saying it was wrong to point the finger at their former starting quarterback: “We’re not idiots. They did it because of money. So be it. But Daniel has been all class, never complained, and is now being completely disregarded. The TEAM record is bad. You can point fingers everywhere. To try to blame him is trash, and making him third string is weak as fu**.”
• Schultz was also told by numerous sources among the Giants’ players, coaches, and executives that the organization’s problems “go far beyond just one person.”