NFC Notes: Bears, Lions, Packers, Vikings, Kirk Cousins

Bears

• The Bears officially hired former Jaguars’ assistant special teams coach Carlos Polk to the same position. 

• The Chicago Bears announced they have hired Tim Zetts as assistant TE coach and Omar Young as offensive quality control coach.
• The Bears also announced they’ve hired David Walker as their new RBs coach.
• The Bears appear to have parted ways with chief negotiator Joey Laine. (Adam Jahns)
• Chicago Bears have announced they’ve hired Andre Curtis as the team’s safeties coach. 

Lions

Lions CB Amani Oruwariye said his goal is to be considered a “lockdown” corner in the NFL. 

“That’s always the end goal,” Oruwariye said, via Tim Twentyman of the team’s official site. “I think if you’re playing corner and you don’t want to be a lockdown, it’s not the position for you, bro. I’m process-oriented. I have a lot to build off from last year, I just have to take it day by day and get my body ready.”

Oruwariye explained that he’s been finding ways to improve each week and tries to increase his film-study. 

“I’ve just been all about just finding a way to get better each year, each week, each game and each day,” Oruwariye said. “I think I did that this year. I tried to increase my film study every single week. Learning from guys like AP (defensive backs/pass game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant). Learning from guys like AG (Glenn).”

Oruwariye, who just finished his third year in the league, compared his acclimation into the NFL to when he was a collegiate athlete. 

“That’s how I was in college. Came in, learned a little bit, redshirted, played some special teams and each year was kind of growing confidence. That’s just been my MO every stage of football.”

Packers

Packers RB Aaron Jones is hoping that QB Aaron Rodgers is back with him in Green Bay for the 2022 season.

“I’ve heard what everybody else has heard, what they’re reading,” Jones told NFL Network. “But I think he’ll be there, in my heart. Green Bay, I can’t imagine him anywhere else, that’s where he’s been his whole career. I just can’t picture him anywhere else. I think we had a lot of fun this year, I hope to have him back and I believe in my heart he’ll be back. We had a lot of veterans in there. Just the way we were able to bring along some of those younger guys and over the course of it have fun and be ourselves and come closer, all in that time, it was just fun to be around. I think it brought joy back to football.”

Vikings

Vikings QB Kirk Cousins said he sees a lot of similarities between new HC Kevin O’Connell and 49ers HC Kyle Shanahan, Packers HC Matt LaFleur, and Rams HC Sean McVay. Cousins worked with all three coaches during his time in Washington. 

“With Kevin I see a lot of the similarities that I saw with Kyle Shanahan, Matt LaFleur, Sean McVay,” Cousins said, via ProFootballTalk. “When they were hired as head coaches you knew they had great football minds, they were innovative, hard workers, good with people. The only real question was, they’re young. Do they have the experience? I think time has proven with Kyle, Matt and Sean that they knew what they were doing and they were able to learn quickly and being a head coach wasn’t too big for them. So I feel a similar sense with Kevin. He is a great football mind. He’s been around a lot of a great football minds. He’s a hard worker. He was big in my development. The fact that he’s never been a head coach before, that he’s a little younger than a lot of head coaches, I think the track record with the other guys would suggest that he’ll be just fine.”

• Vikings QB Kirk Cousins had high praise of new HC Kevin O’Connell‘s background in the NFL: “He is a great football mind. He’s been around a lot of a great football minds. He’s a hard worker. He was big in my development.” (Chris Tomasson)
• Cousins expects better results next season: “Just looking forward to getting to work with the group we have.. Expecting to have a much better year.. I think we have the roster that can really make a run so that’s exciting as a QB to feel like you have the pieces in place to be a great football team.” (Chris Tomasson)
• Aaron Wilson reports that the Vikings are hiring former Bears secondary coach Deshea Townsend to the same role.