NFC Notes: Saquon Barkley, Josh Harris, Commanders, Giants

Commanders

Commanders President Jason Wright is looking forward to the direction the team will go after being purchased by an ownership group that includes Josh Harris and Magic Johnson.

“Things are shifting today,” Wright said, via Pro Football Talk. “And I’m really grateful to be here and I thank each and every one of you for being here with us. It’s an exciting day for the Commanders franchise. It’s an exciting day for the nation’s capital. It’s an exciting day for the most loyal and rabid fan base in the NFL. And we’re going to lean into that excitement today. We’ve got some great people to introduce you to. Yes, I like it. I mean, there’s a palpable optimism that just hasn’t been present for some time.”

• Harris on what inspired him to buy the Commanders: “This isn’t just something for me. I feel a great sense of responsibility to make this work and to make the city proud of the franchise again.” (Nicki Jhabvala)

Giants

Giants S Xavier McKinney told reporters that he and his teammates will have no issues with RB Saquon Barkley not attending training camp due to his current contract situation. 

“For me, I’ve talked to him, and regardless of any decision that he makes, whether he’s there or whether he’s not here, I respect it 100 percent,” McKinney commented, via the New York Post. “I’m behind him 100 percent. I wouldn’t have any hard feelings, no anything towards him whatever decision that he decides. Obviously, we want him to be there but if he can’t, we understand that as well. I think that’s not just for me but that goes for a lot of guys in our locker room. I just don’t want that to be the narrative — if he decides not to come, then nobody’s gonna be mad.”

“We all with him. We all respect him. We all love him,” McKinney added. “And we all know what he brings for our team, and we know what he’ll bring to any team, as well. And we also know how great he is in this league. So that’s how we approach it, and we’ll just keep it at that.”

Giants

Giants WR Darius Slayton isn’t concerned about a perceived lack of respect for him around the NFL.

“I wouldn’t say it bothers me because everybody doesn’t know what I know,” said Slayton, via Ryan Dunleavy of The New York Post. “Everybody is not in the Giants’ building. At the end of the day, you can only judge based on what you see from afar.”

As for why he’s been unable to break the 1,000-yard mark, Slayton points out there have been a lot of offensive weapons around him including RB Saquon Barkley, WR Sterling Shepard, TE Evan Engram, and now TE Darren Waller. 

“You see this guy go for 1,010 (yards) or see a guy go for 100 yards every week, and you go, ‘He’s really good,'” Slayton said. “Some of these guys play with nobody. I play with Saquon (Barkley). Where do you think the ball is going first? Not me. We had (Sterling Shepard), Evan Engram, and now Darren (Waller). I didn’t play with just a bunch of bums. That’s a little annoying because at the end of the day, it’s not like I’ve ever been the only person or one person to get the ball, whereas somebody [else] is. It is what it is. At the end of the day, I just play to win. As long as the Giants win, I’ll be alright.”

Slayton is confident he’ll continue having a big role in New York’s offense despite being in a crowded receivers group including Wan’Dale Robinson, Isaiah Hodgins, Parris Campbell, Jamison Crowder, and rookie Jalin Hyatt.

“I believe in myself. I believe in my ability. I believe in the work I put in the offseason,” Slayton said. “Whether we add 10 guys, whether we add all of you guys, I believe I’ll find my way on the field.”