Commanders

The Commanders suffered a 34-27 loss to the Falcons in Week 4, where they trailed 10-0 at the end of the first quarter and 17-10 by halftime. When asked about their poor start to the game, Washington’s DC Joe Whitt Jr. responded that they made some assignment mistakes on plays they saw coming. 

“When I talk about the communication and playing as one, and no capes, let’s talk about, like, the first third down of the game. It’s a look that we knew was coming. It is actually the play that we worked on. They ran the play that we worked, we call them looks to own. And so they ran the fast motion over option away from three with a seven. And we had one guy that got a little greedy, but it wasn’t his play to make; he should have been on the vertical, and the vertical was open. And so, we don’t need anybody to put capes on. Alright. That play was for Uce [Luvu] to make, and Uce was working to it, but the wide, it was wide open. So, the communication and understanding, we don’t have to put a cape on that. You just do your job,” Whitt said, via CommandersWire. 

Whitt praised LB Frankie Luvu for his performance. 

“Frankie, he looked pretty impactful in the run game. So, Frankie played really well. He’s the one guy that played well in this game. Yeah, the numbers are there. He’s rushed more than any off-the-ball linebacker in the league. They’re doing different things against him, and that’s why [LB] Bobby’s [Wagner] getting the success that he’s getting and [DE Dorance] DA’s [Armstrong] getting some of the, so they’re, like I said, they’re focusing more on him, and that’s good.”

• Commanders OC Kliff Kingsbury said the team wanted to make sure QB Jayden Daniels was fully healthy before putting him back on the field: “I think that’s why we were overly cautious. We didn’t want to put him out there unless he could be Jayden.” (Nicki Jhabvala)

Cowboys

Cowboys WR George Pickens was a critical part of Dallas’ 40-40 tie with the Packers in Week 4, recording eight receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns. CeeDee Lamb, who is out with a high-ankle sprain, highly praised Pickens following his performance.

“That man don’t got to fit in, he stands out,” Lamb said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “GP is a hell of a player, man. And there’s plenty more excitement where that’s coming from.”

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott hasn’t been surprised by Pickens’ productivity and was impressed by how the receiver stayed focused throughout the game. 

“No surprises, honestly,” Prescott said. “I’m super proud of him. He played (Sunday) just as I expected him to play. And what I was most impressed about is just the way that he was focused and locked in in the game, the whole game. And not only just locked in doing everything that he needed to do and do it right, but just the conversations he was having in the huddle. Uplifting other guys, saying the right things to keep guys focused and keep guys staying in the moment and being present. And not only was he saying it, he was doing it himself and being an example. And (he) made big play after play to give us a chance. … I’m not surprised at all. He did that all camp. He’s done that his whole career. And just having a guy like that, he’s going to do more of it.”

Cowboys HC Brian Schottenheimer said he made a lot of calls to find out more about Pickens when they were discussing acquiring him in the offseason.

“Different things,” Schottenheimer said. “How much he loved football, that he loves to play the game. You might have to deal with him being late occasionally and some things like that, which sometimes we all oversleep. But for the most part it was all positive. The people that we spoke to in and around the league, in Pittsburgh and at Georgia, they were very honest. Whether it’s good or bad information, you do your homework and that’s part of the process. That’s not the only process. The minute I sat down with George Pickens in my office, and we shot some hoops, it was very clear to me, this guy was fired up to be a Dallas Cowboy and excited to help us go win games.”

Giants

Giants first-round QB Jaxson Dart, who is gearing up for his second start in the NFL, said that he will be playing with a chip on his shoulder against New Orleans after they passed on him in the draft.

“There is always a chip on your shoulder any time something like that happens,” Dart said via ESPN’s Jordan Raanan. “But yeah, I’m just going to go out there and play as hard as I can.”

The Saints showed significant interest in Dart during the pre-draft process and met with him multiple times.

“Yeah, I felt like my visit with them went good,” Dart said. “You kind of have thoughts in your head about what options are realistic, and I felt that was a place that could’ve panned out. But things didn’t work out that way.”

Dart believes that he ended up right where he needed to be, and he’s happy to be with the Giants.

“I love it here. There’s not a place that I’d rather be,” Dart said. “I love just how passionate people are outside the facility, in the facility. I like the attitude the East Coasters have. It’s a lot of fun. So I love it.”

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