NFC Notes: Antoine Winfield Jr., Kirk Cousins, Bryce Young, Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers

Buccaneers

• Buccaneers S Antoine Winfield Jr.’s four-year, $84.1 million deal includes a $20 million roster bonus in 2024 and a $1.5 million bonus in 2027. (OverTheCap)
• He’s owed a guaranteed salary of $4 million in 2024 and $21 million in 2025, along with non-guaranteed salaries of $19.5 million in 2026 and $18.1 million in 2027. 
• Buccaneers OC Liam Coen named G Sua Opeta initially when asked about the competition at starting left guard. (Greg Auman)
• Coen noted they looked to add more size in the trenches in the draft and also mentioned C Robert Hainsey and others have been getting bigger. (Rick Stroud)
• Tampa Bay QB coach Thaddeus Lewis named the motion and shifts as the biggest changes to the offense under Coen which aims to help figure out defensive looks presnap. (Auman)
• Buccaneers ST coordinator Thomas McGaughey brought up P Jake Camarda‘s strong leg but added they need him to be more consistent this season. (Auman)
• The Buccaneers hosted TE Hunter Kampmoyer at their rookie minicamp. (Greg Auman)
• Tampa Bay also tried out CB Anthony Johnson at rookie minicamp. (Auman)

Falcons

• Falcons HC Raheem Morris on QB Kirk Cousins: “We’re really excited on where he’s at and his progress (physically) and in his mental capacity to hold the offense and what he’s able to do for the guys.” (Josh Kendall)
• Morris also talked about DT Grady Jarrett‘s recovery from his torn ACL: “It’s not even a conversation. It’s the look in his eye. … That passion and what he’s able to do it’s special.” (Terrin Waack)
• Per Tori McElhaney, RB Bijan Robinson, RB Jase McClellan and Jarrett were not at practice on Tuesday due to injury. 
• Cousins was at practice and mentioned he felt as good as he’s had since the injury: “(Rehab) is coming along well… Everything is trending in the right direction.” (Tori McElhaney)
• Regarding first-round QB Michael Penix Jr., Cousins had positive things to say: “Mike’s been great. There’s always going to be competition in this league and you have to go out and earn it. I’m going to control what I can control and I understand there’s a lot you can’t control.” (Kendall)
• Cousins spoke on the dynamic in the QB room: “The quarterback room is a working force for one another. … We are there to work together and that dynamic has always been there and it will always be there.” (McElhaney)
• With the plethora of young skill players, Cousins aims to help them unlock their full potential: “My favorite part of the job right now is watching film, taking reps on air, … with guys like Kyle Pitts, Drake London, Bijan, Mooney, Tyler, I could go on.” (McElhaney)
• When Atlanta selected Penix, Cousins said he was driving home from a team draft night when they called to inform him of the pick: “They called me and said, ‘We’re going to take a quarterback here,’ and I’m like, ‘OK’ It was pretty straightforward.” (Kendall)
• Cousins responded to a question about if he would’ve signed with the Falcons had he known they were taking a QB in the first round: “I don’t really deal in hypotheticals. We could go down that path for a long time in a lot of ways. It just doesn’t do us any good. I’m excited for this opportunity that I have. I think it’s a real privilege to be a quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons, and I’m trying to make good on the opportunity that they’ve given me with the way I work each day and the way we play this fall.” (Waack)

Panthers

Hall of Fame executive and Panthers’ consultant Bill Polian thinks it’s unfair to compare Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud‘s rookie seasons given Carolina’s roster wasn’t as put together. 

“To use one season where at least one quarterback, Bryce, never had a chance because of people around him in all phases — pass protection and weapons, aside from (running back) Chuba (Hubbard) — and you make a judgment based on that is utterly fallacious,” said Polian, via Joseph Person of The Athletic. 

Polian praised Young for powering through a 60-sack season and improving as the year went on. 

“I think what you saw was a tremendously courageous performance by a kid who’s tough as nails. … And he got better as a passer — both with accuracy and the speed of his decision-making — as the season went along,” Polian said. “How he survived 60 sacks is a tribute to both his resilience and his toughness. And nobody can play — and I don’t care if it’s Tom Brady or Peyton Manning or anybody — efficiently under that kind of duress.”

Young recalled meeting new HC Dave Canales as the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator during his pre-draft process last year. The coach gave him feedback on some of his mechanics to stand more upright in the pocket. 

“It was just really a cool moment, and also it just goes to show the attention to the detail that (Canales) has,” Young said. “And that was last year, they were in a different situation. He was just kind of doing that research to do it at the time. And he still had that attention to detail, which meant a lot. And obviously, it makes a lot of sense being able to work with him now — how detail-oriented he is.”