Let’s take a look at a few Monday items from out of the NFC East, where the Cowboys and Eagles are tied for first place at 7-3, with the 3-7 Giants tied with Washington in the cellar….
- The Giants are expected to activate guard Geoff Schwartz today based on the progress he has made in his recovery from a toe injury, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Head coach Tom Coughlin has since confirmed that Schwartz will be added to the roster in advance of today’s deadline, per Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (via Twitter).
- Taking an in-depth look into Dez Bryant‘s contract situation with the Cowboys, Bob Sturm of the Dallas Morning News concludes that something in the range of six years and $84MM, with $28MM in guaranteed money, could make sense for both the team and the wideout.
- While the Cowboys have been known for their lavish spending in the past, the team’s recent deals have been more club-friendly, often offering protection against injuries or a decline in performance, writes Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com. That doesn’t mean that Bryant won’t get a long-term deal from the Cowboys, but it means that negotiations might be trickier than they would have been a few years ago.
- In a separate ESPN.com piece, Archer takes a look at defensive lineman Henry Melton, whose deal includes an option that the Cowboys will have to exercise or turn down this winter. Based on Melton’s performance so far, it looks like a sure thing that Dallas will pick up the option, but Melton tells Archer that he’s not thinking about his future for now.
- At OverTheCap.com, a pair of NFC East quarterbacks show up in Jason Fitzgerald’s weekly list of players whose stocks took a hit over the weekend. Fitzgerald identifies Giants QB Eli Manning and Washington signal-caller Robert Griffin III as players on the decline, suggesting Griffin’s “star hasn’t just dimmed, its completely burned out.”