NFC East

Free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. still hasn't decided which team he will sign with, but ESPN Monday Night Football analyst Troy Aikman believes he knows where the 30-year-old will end up.

During a radio appearance on Friday, Aikman said he's already convinced that Beckham is destined to land with the Dallas Cowboys:

Beckham has been flirting with the idea of signing with Dallas for weeks now. Early in November, he named the Cowboys as one of four teams he would be interested in joining after he completed his recovery from a torn ACL suffered in Super Bowl LVI while he was a member of the Los Angeles Rams.

The interest has been mutual, as Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and receiver CeeDee Lamb both endorsed the possibility of the team signing Beckham. Dallas star defensive players Micah Parsons, Trevon Diggs and DeMarcus Lawrence all recruited Beckham on social media after he reacted to the team's 40-3 blowout win over the Minnesota Vikings.

The Cowboys are not alone in pursuing Beckham, as they face competition from an NFC East rival. New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll told reporters that he had dinner with Beckham on Thursday night and described it as a "good visit."

Beckham was drafted 12th overall by the Giants in 2014 and spent five seasons with the team. He quickly established himself as one of the top receivers in the league, recording over 1,000 yards in four of his five years in New York. The LSU was eventually traded to the Cleveland Browns and spend two-and-a-half seasons with the franchise before signing with Los Angeles midway through the 2021 campaign.

If Aikman's prediction comes true, Beckham could provide an extra spark for a Cowboys team that is hoping for a deep postseason run this year. At 8-3, Dallas is firmly entrenched in the playoff race and will go for its third straight win when it hosts the Indianapolis Colts (4-7-1) on Sunday Night Football.

New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll gave a positive update on the team's meeting with free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. this week.

Daboll told reporters the organization had a "good visit" with Beckham on Thursday night and that the wideout would meet with other people at the team facilities Friday.

Per ESPN, Beckham is also scheduled to meet with the Buffalo Bills on Friday and the Dallas Cowboys on Monday.

OBJ has remained unsigned since the offseason during his recovery from a torn ACL suffered during the Los Angeles Rams' Super Bowl win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported this week that someone close to Beckham said he had been fully cleared from his injury, meaning he could be in line to play shortly after signing with a team.

Signing with the Giants would represent the biggest possible feel-good story for OBJ since he began his NFL career with the G-Men.

New York selected Beckham with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft out of LSU, and he instantly established himself as one of the league's top pass-catchers.

Beckham finished with at least 90 receptions, 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns in each of his first three NFL seasons, and he made the Pro Bowl each of those years.

Injuries slowed Beckham down in the years that followed, though, and the Giants traded him to the Cleveland Browns prior to the 2019 season.

When Beckham's tenure in Cleveland went south after less than two full seasons, he was waived and signed with the Rams, with whom he made a major impact.

Along with now-Bills pass-rusher Von Miller, Beckham was a huge acquisition ahead of their Super Bowl run last season, as he recorded 27 receptions for 305 yards and five touchdowns in eight regular-season games for L.A.

He was even better in the playoffs, racking up 21 catches for 288 yards and two touchdowns in four games, including the opening touchdown of the Super Bowl.

Little was expected of the Giants in 2022, but with Daboll taking over as head coach, they have turned the corner more quickly than anyone could have guessed.

On the heels of five consecutive losing seasons, the Giants are 7-4 and would be a playoff team if the season ended today.

Much of that can be owed to a solid defense and one of the NFL's top running games behind running back Saquon Barkley. Quarterback Daniel Jones and the passing game have left something to be desired, but a lack of weapons has undoubtedly played a role.

Wideouts Sterling Shepard and Wan'Dale Robinson are both injured, Kadarius Toney was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs and Kenny Golladay has continued to be a nonfactor.

The Giants have had to lean on the likes of Darius Slayton, Richie James, David Sills and Isaiah Hodgins, leaving Jones without a go-to guy.

Beckham would be precisely that. If he chooses the Giants, getting to be the No. 1 receiver may be part of the reason why, as he would play second fiddle to CeeDee Lamb in Dallas and Stefon Diggs in Buffalo.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was asked on Thursday about a photo that surfaced showing team owner Jerry Jones, at the age of 14, in a crowd of white students attempting to block six Black students from entering and attending North Little Rock High School in 1957.

"I don't have much to say," Prescott told reporters, in part. "Obviously, we can be more empathetic and give grace to one another. Regardless of race, from the times we've come from to where we are now, thinking about the growth we've had, that’s who I am, that's how I think. Optimistic. A guy who is completely biracial, Black and white. It's easy for me to speak on race on one side or the other."

Earlier in November, The Washington Post's David Maraniss and Sally Jenkins profiled Jones and noted his presence when the North Little Rock Six attempted to desegregate the Arkansas school in a greater examination of his tenure as an owner and his poor record of hiring Black coaches.

The photo became a major headline on Thursday, when LeBron James questioned why the media focused heavily on Kyrie Irving amplifying an antisemitic film on social media but seemed to quickly move on from the photo of Jones.

"I got one question for you guys before you guys leave. I was thinking when I was on my way over here, I was wondering why I haven't gotten a question from you guys about the Jerry Jones photo," he said. "But when the Kyrie [Irving] thing was going on, you guys were quick to ask us questions about that."

He continued:

I feel like as a Black man, as a Black athlete, as someone with power and a platform, when we do something wrong, or something that people don't agree with, it's on every single tabloid, every single news coverage, it's on the bottom ticker. It's asked about every single day.

But it seems like to me that the whole Jerry Jones situation, photo—and I know it was years and years ago and we all make mistakes, I get it—but it seems like it's just been buried under, like, 'Oh, it happened. OK, we just move on.' And I was just kind of disappointed that I haven't received that question from you guys.

Jones told reporters after the Maraniss and Jenkins story broke that he didn't realize the scope of what was happening at North Little Rock High School back in 1957.

"I didn't know at the time the monumental event that was going on, and I'm sure glad that we're a long way from that," the 80-year-old said. "I am. That would remind me just to continue to do everything we can to not have those kinds of things happen."

Jones added that he was there to see what was going on, not participate in blocking the Black students from entering the school.

"We didn't have all of the last 70 years of reference and all the things that were going, so you didn't have a reference point there," he said. "Still, I've got a habit of sticking this nose in the right place at the wrong time."

It's hard to find fault with anything the Philadelphia Eagles have done amid building a 10-1 record this season, but at least one executive from an NFC team has questions about their ability to maximize A.J. Brown with their current quarterback.

Speaking to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, the anonymous executive questioned Jalen Hurts as a franchise quarterback who is capable of taking advantage of everything Brown can do.

"I don't really believe in Jalen Hurts like some others do—are you getting a full return on Brown considering the quarterback they have?" the NFC executive said. "That's a legitimate question."

There's no arguing the addition of Brown has opened up elements of the passing game that were missing for Hurts in 2021. The fourth-year wide receiver leads the team 831 receiving yards and seven touchdowns.

Hurts has made huge strides as a quarterback from 2021 to 2022. He has increased his completion percentage by six points (61.3 to 67.3), rating by more than 18 points (87.2 to 105.6) and QBR by almost 20 points (48.5 to 68.2). His 17 touchdown passes in 11 games are one more than he had in 15 starts last season.

There has been a shift in how Hurts is succeeding recently. He's only thrown for 343 yards in the past two games, but has made up for it with 243 yards on 33 carries. His 157 yards on the ground against the Green Bay Packers in Week 12 were the most by a quarterback in Eagles history.

Hurts only had 26 rushing attempts in the previous four games before Week 11. The 24-year-old may never be regarded as one of the best pocket passers in the NFL, but the results this season have inspired confidence he can be a high-level starter for a long time.

Having a true No. 1 receiver like Brown has elevated Hurts' game. Not every elite wideout gets the opportunity to play with an elite quarterback, but if the pieces fit to make the team successful, no one is going to bat an eye.

Tom Brady offered high praise to Jalen Hurts on his podcast Let's Go! after the Philadelphia Eagles' win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday:

"That's why that team is so successful. He's playing at a very, very, very high level, and they're a tough team to stop," Brady said of Hurts.

Hurts has emerged as an MVP candidate with 17 passing touchdowns and just three interceptions, adding 597 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. He's a major reason the Eagles are 10-1.

Brady has won three MVP awards himself and was second in voting last year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, although he's mostly succeeded with his passing rather than rushing. The 45-year-old has negative-six rushing yards through 11 games in 2022.

It's easy to see why Brady has been in awe of Hurts' all-around play.

The Philadelphia Eagles will be without cornerback C.J. Gardner-Johnson after he suffered a lacerated kidney during Sunday's 40-33 victory over the Green Bay Packers.

Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Gardner-Johnson will be out indefinitely and testing is still ongoing, but he won't need surgery and isn't expected to miss the rest of the season.

Gardner-Johnson was injured in the first quarter when he delivered a big hit to Packers wide receiver Christian Watson. He fell to a knee afterward and walked to the sidelines before being carted to the locker room for evaluation.

The Eagles announced at the start of the third quarter that Gardner-Johnson was ruled out for the rest of the game with a rib injury.

Reed Blankenship took over at safety for the remainder of the game. He picked off Aaron Rodgers early in the second quarter and finished with a season-high six combined tackles.

A rookie out of Middle Tennessee State, Blankeship did have some rough moments in his first extended playing time. He was flagged for an unnecessary roughness penalty in the third quarter and got beat on Watson's 63-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter.

Losing Gardner-Johnson for any length of time is significant for the Eagles secondary. The 24-year-old leads the NFL with six interceptions, ranks third on the team with eight pass breakups and has four tackles for loss in 11 starts.

Blankenship had primarily been playing on special teams coming into Week 12. He had just two snaps with the defense all season before replacing Gardner-Johnson. The 23-year-old finished with 35 defensive snaps against the Packers.

The Eagles do benefit from having the NFL's best record (10-1) and a two-game lead over the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC East. They can play things slow with Gardner-Johnson if they want to because they are a safe bet to at least make the playoffs already.

Philadelphia will host the Tennessee Titans on Sunday before embarking on a three-game road trip against the New York Giants (Dec. 11), Chicago Bears (Dec. 18) and Cowboys (Dec. 24).

It was the best of halves, it was the worst of halves for Dak Prescott on Thanksgiving. Luckily for the Dallas Cowboys, the good half came in the final 30 minutes and put away the New York Giants.

Prescott recovered from two first-half interceptions to lead the Cowboys to a 28-20 win in a key NFC East showdown, throwing for two scores and leading the Cowboys on three touchdown drives in the second half to secure the win.

He finished 21-of-30 for 261 yards on the day. Ezekiel Elliott (16 carries for 92 yards) and Peyton Hendershot added rushing scores.

The victory moved the Cowboys to 8-3 on the season and alone in second place in the NFC East behind the 9-1 Philadelphia Eagles, while the Giants fell to 7-4 and dropped to third in the division.

And as NFL Twitter noted, it was all because Prescott caught fire in the second half:

Granted, the Cowboys went into the half trailing 13-7 in part because Prescott threw two picks and also missed a number of throws, leaving big plays on the field. He now has six interceptions in six games this season, a somewhat worrying trend.

But that won't be the story on Thursday because he lit up the Giants in the second half and the always stout Cowboys defense didn't allow them to score a point between the end of the second quarter and the final seconds of the fourth quarter.

For much of the season, the recipe for success for the Cowboys has been the defense stymying opponents and the Cowboys' run game battering and bruising its way to points. And the Cowboys did that on Thanksgiving, going for 169 yards on the ground.

But Prescott's ability to make plays through the air is why this team has Super Bowl aspirations, and why they are a different team to the one that played well with Cooper Rush under center while Prescott was hurt.

This ceiling of this Cowboys team will be determined by Prescott. That was evident in both halves on Thursday.