Commanders

The Commanders signed WR Terry McLaurin to a three-year extension in August near the end of the preseason, which ended a long standoff that dragged on all summer. Washington GM Adam Peters admitted that he would’ve liked to get McLaurin’s contract done sooner last offseason. 

“I think both us and Terry would agree that we would’ve like to get that done a little bit faster,” Peters said, via CommandersWire. “It didn’t happen that way. Certainly, you know there’s reasons for that, but ultimately you’d like to get those things done before we did.”

Cowboys

The Cowboys go into the offseason in search of a new defensive coordinator after firing Matt Eberflus. Owner Jerry Jones was asked if he would have the final say in the hire, responding that HC Brian Schottenheimer influenced the decision to bring in Eberflus, and they’ll continue listening to Schottenheimer on the matter. 

“Seriously, Schotty had everything to do with hiring Matt Eberflus,” Jones said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “No way in the world he’s here if Schotty didn’t want him here. Let me be real clear about that. And he can tell you in his own words. No way in the world if Stephen (Jones) didn’t want him here. … We’ll make it the same way that we’ve made all of the calls around here on staff. … We’ll do it together and come up with as good as we can.”

Schottenheimer said they want a candidate who is a great teacher and communicator, with an ability to easily translate things to players “in a simple manner.”

“We want to cast a wide net of candidates and find someone who is a great teacher, a great communicator,” Schottenheimer said. “I’m full of energy, and love what I do. I think (we’re looking for) someone that is passionate about football. But the ability to take what is complicated information, what we ask our players to do in all three phases is complicated. We want guys that can say complicated information in a simple manner. And if I say something to you that you don’t understand, I need the ability to say it in a different way, the same message but say it a different way because how you learn might be different than how (someone else) learns. I think that’s the starting point for me.”

Schottenheimer added that he wants a coordinator who is “flexible” and can fit players into what they do best. 

“Good coaches take their players and they fit their players into the model that fits what they do well,” Schottenheimer said. “You’re looking for a guy that has the ability to instruct and get guys to believe and get guys to buy in. We’re salesmen. When you’re up there in front of players, you’re selling them on why (what you’re doing) is going to work. Part of that is your personality, part of it is your ability to communicate. But when we cast this wide net and go find the right guy for this job, which we will find, no question about it, it’s going to be the things that Jerry talked about, but also the flexibility of, ‘Hey, we can do different things,’ because those are the things that cause us problems (on offense). The flexibility and some of the unknowns and things like that.”

Giants

Giants RB Cam Skattebo said he wants to be known for more than his loud demeanor on the field, mentioning that it doesn’t mean much to be the face of a losing team. 

“Everywhere I’ve been, I’ve kind of been the rah-rah [guy] just because I’m loud and obnoxious, but we still went 4-13,” Skattebo said, via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post. “If you’re the face of the franchise and you’re not a good franchise, then there’s still an issue — and it’s not that big of a deal. But if I’m the face of the franchise when we’re winning the Super Bowl, then you can ask me that question in a year or two.”

Skattebo landed on season-ending injured reserve in late October after suffering a dislocated ankle and fractured fibula. He said he’s a week away from “moving around and upping my speed.” 

“Getting healthy, so that’s what matters,” Skattebo said. “I’ve got about another week until I start moving around and upping my speed a little bit. Time is going to tell, but I’m taking it easy because we have plenty of time to get back to it.”

Giants QB Jaxson Dart is confident that Skattebo will return stronger in 2026. 

“He’s going to be ready,” Dart said. “I feel like if they would’ve let Skatt play [Sunday], he would’ve played. He’s attacked it. He’s got a great plan in place for him to be ready, and he’s going to come back stronger than he was before.”

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