NFC Notes: Buccaneers, Eagles, Panthers, Vikings

April 2, 2018

Buccaneers

New Buccaneers C Ryan Jensen mentioned during an interview with Sirius XM NFL Radio that Tampa Bay being in a “win-now situation” really appealed to him in free agency.

“Looking at Tampa Bay’s roster, we got a lot of young talent,” Jensen said. “Just signed Mike Evans back. I just felt the way things are going there, that it’s gonna be kind of a win-now situation and I thrive in that kind of situation.”

Eagles

Jimmy Kempski of PhillyVoice.com explains that part of the reason for CB Ronald Darby surfacing as a potential trade option for the Eagles this offseason is due to the fact that Philadelphia will once again be in a tough financial position next year, as they currently have the second-most amount of money committed toward their 2019 salary cap.
Darby is in the final year of his rookie contract and Philadelphia is clearly going to have a difficult time re-signing him in 2019. With this in mind, Kempski says it would make a lot of sense for the Eagles to trade him now if they secure compensation close to a third-round pick.

Panthers

Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that South Carolina businessman Ben Navarro is visiting with the Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on Monday.
Last week, Canadian steel billionaire Alan Kestenbaum had a site visit and Steelers minority owner David Tepper is expected to travel to Charlotte for a meeting at some point in the near future.
Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer takes a look at six defensive backs the Panthers could consider at No. 24 overall later this month. Rodrigue’s list includes Stanford S Justin Reid, Louisville CB Jaire Alexander, Alabama S Ronnie Harrison, Iowa CB Josh Jackson, UCF CB Mike Hughes, and Wake Forest S Jessie Bates.

Vikings

New Vikings WR Kendall Wright mentioned that having Kirk Cousins in place as their quarterback was a “big part” in him signing with Minnesota.

“[Cousins] was a big part of the decision,” Wright said, per Ben Goessling. “I’ve played with a lot of QBs. I’ve never played with one of Kirk Cousins‘ caliber.”