NFC Notes: Buccaneers, Eagles, Saints

Buccaneers

While many saw Rob Gronkowski coming out of retirement as a foregone conclusion, the tight end says the situation with QB Tom Brady and the Buccaneers was the exact set of circumstances he needed. Gronkowski said he “wasn’t just going to come back out of retirement just to come out of retirement” and being able to reunite with Brady after a year to recuperate was the driving factor. 

“I was feeling healthy,” Gronkowski said in an interview on CBS Sports radio. “I had that juice going again. When Tom and I talked a little bit and just thought about the situation and how we can pull it off and everything — everything went well. Everything went down as planned and the situations all lined up. I thought it was a great opportunity that I couldn’t pass on. It’s just going to be fun. It’s going to be cool.”

Eagles

Eagles QB Carson Wentz continues to have his injuries come at the worst time. Wentz made it through a full 16-game season in 2019, but a concussion after just a handful of snaps knocked him out of his first career playoff game. Philadelphia made adding speed around Wentz a priority this offseason and Eagles RT Lane Johnson believes Wentz is poised for a massive season to prove once and for all he can put it all together. 

“I think we all have something to prove every year,” Johnson said via PennLive.com’s Daniel Gallen. “Especially with how last year ended, him coming out early with the hit by [Jadeveon] Clowney, as far as just competitiveness, his drive, this is it for him. As far as having the pieces around him this year and really ready to click, I think he’s ready for a prime time season, and when he’s healthy, man, he’s so dangerous, and I think we’ll see more of that what you just saw across the screen.”

Saints

Most of the Saints safeties on the roster for 2020 aren’t just safeties. New Orleans brought back S Malcolm Jenkins in free agency this year who plays a role almost like a linebacker near the line of scrimmage much of the time. 2019 fourth-round DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson flashed potential as a slot corner and safety as a rookie last year. And late in the season, the Saints discovered CB P.J. Williams might actually be a better fit at safety. 

“I think that’s where this game is going,” said Saints secondary coach Aaron Glenn via the Athletic’s Katherine Terrell. “As a coach, the game is evolving toward getting players like that. You see the Malcolm Jenkins’s, you see the C.J. Gardner-Johnson’s, he can play safety, he can play nickel, dime, he can play corner when we need him to. So I think that is the wave of players you’re trying to get on your team because you can move them around. They can be in different positions. If the offense can identify where they are, I think that can be troublesome.”