NFC Notes: Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers

Buccaneers

Buccaneers HC Bruce Arians compared second-round QB Kyle Trask to Colts QB Andrew Luck based on his mental approach to the game. 

“I’m really impressed,” Arians said, via ProFootballTalk. “Mentally, he’s not far behind what Andrew did in the same offense. What Andrew did that year was unbelievable. I’m not saying he’s Andrew Luck, but mentally he’s really, really sharp.”

Falcons

• ESPN’s Kimberley Martin reports the Ravens and Rams are out of the running to trade for Falcons WR Julio Jones for now. 
• She adds she continues to hear the Titans are the most likely destination for Jones. 
• Falcons TE Hayden Hurst said he’s down to eight percent body fat and feels like a “man on a mission” this year. (Scott Bair)

Panthers

Last year the Panthers became the first NFL team to spend an entire draft class on one side of the ball, using all seven of their picks on defense. They didn’t need to do that again this year but they still spent significant effort on bringing in more talent to rebuild their defense, including first-round CB Jaycee Horn, OLB Haason Reddick, CB A.J. Bouye, DL Morgan Fox, LB Denzel Perryman and DT DaQuan Jones. 

“I feel like we’re kind of complete now, to be honest. . . .We had a lot of rookies that needed to step up,” Panthers DE Brian Burns said via the team’s website. “They came, they got better each and every week, so by the end of the season, they came along. Going into this season, their second year, they should have their feet wet and be fine now. We’re up and running now. I don’t feel like a lot of things can stop us this year.”

Burns is particularly excited about the addition of Reddick, who broke out with 12.5 sacks for the Cardinals last year and is a similar player to Burns. 

“It’s going to help me a lot. He’s going to take up a lot of attention, but we’ve got a bunch of guys that are going to help me out,” Burns said via the Athletic’s Joe Person. “I think he’s going to make me go even harder because there’s going to be a little competition now in the room to who gets the sacks fastest. And also, he’s going to take a lot of attention off me with the O-line and everything. So they just can’t slide to my side or anything like that. They’re going to have to pick their poison.”

• Panthers WR Robby Anderson hasn’t been at voluntary OTAs but his teammate, WR D.J. Moore, doesn’t foresee any issues that would keep him away from minicamp: “I’m not concerned about it. We talk every day. I try to keep him in the loop. I know he’s working hard. Everyone on this team knows he’s working hard down where he stays at. We want him here. I would love him here because that’s my boy. But I know he’s working hard, so I’m cool with it.”