Buccaneers
Buccaneers WR Mike Evans praised the performance of veteran QB Tom Brady following their playoff-clinching win over the Panthers on Sunday.
“Tom was just dropping dimes,” Evans said, via Jenna Laine of ESPN.com. “Those were some really, really good balls. This was one of the best games I’ve seen Tom play since he’s been here. They were like falling right in my . . . in the breadbasket every time. He had an unbelievable game.”
- Bucs HC Todd Bowles says the team currently has no plans to rest any starters in Week 18, despite already clinching a playoff spot: “Right now everybody needs to plan on playing.” (Sara Walsh)
Falcons
Falcons HC Arthur Smith was pleased with the way QB Desmond Ridder stepped up in the team’s win over the Cardinals on Sunday, including his 14-yard pass to set up the game-winning field goal.
“Big-time play by him, that was a tight window throw, gotta-have-it moment,” Smith told Josh Kendall of The Athletic. “You can make a lot of stats in quarters one through three, but if you want to be a big-time quarterback, you’re going to need to win critical third downs and two-minute situations and go win the game like he did there. His pocket awareness was really good, he extended some plays, got us out of some things, and that’s what you want to see if you want to be a real starting quarterback in this league, you have to be able to do that,”
“There is a lot of hope,” Smith added. “It’s not just the rookies, but it is nice to see those guys we invested in and fit our culture (play well). We will just keep finding ways to try to improve and to win. It’s going to come down to these close games. The way this team works, I’ll be sad that next week is the last week for us.”
“You’re in the red zone, so windows are going to be tighter,” Ridder said of his game-winning drive. “I saw them fall back in the zone and knew I had to get him a ball we throw every day in practice. That’s what I did. He caught it, drop-stepped, and got us a couple more yards.”
“We just want to play our best game every single day. We know we can’t be in the playoffs, but we talk about wanting to finish these last two games strong, finish it with something good for the future,” Ridder continued. “That started well today.”
Panthers
- Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer mentions Eagles QB coach Brian Johnson as an offensive coordinator candidate should Panthers interim HC Steve Wilks remain in the role.
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