NFC Notes: Buccaneers, Lions, Saints

Buccaneers

• Florida Football Insiders wonders if the Buccaneers could be a landing spot for free agent RB Adrian Peterson, considering that the team showed some level of interest in him last offseason.
• The article mentions that Peterson could fit into a “short-term veteran role” and be paired with RB Peyton Barber and second-round RB Ronald Jones.
• We have Peterson featured in our Top 50 Available 2018 NFL Free Agents list.

Lions

• Michael Rothstein of ESPN writes that S Quandre Diggs has a “legitimate shot” to start opposite of Glover Quin in Week 1, while Tavon Wilson will be his biggest competition for a first-string role.
• Rothstein thinks Detroit could keep five safeties on the 2018 roster including Quin, Diggs, Wilson, and Miles Killebrew if they think Diggs and Wilson could play both corner and safety and Killebrew continues to stand out on special teams.
• Regarding the Lions’ linebackers, Rothstein expects Jarrad Davis, Devon Kennard, and Christian Jones to be the team’s “main linebackers”, with Jalen Reeves-Maybin also receiving a decent amount of playing time.

Saints

Saints WR Cameron Meredith admitted that the knee injury he suffered last year was very serious, but he’s confident about his rehab and where things stand.

“ACL, MCL and meniscus,” Meredith said, via the Advocate. “It was a major injury. I’m not gonna downplay it, but at the same time, to be where I’m at coming off of that says a lot about my doctor and my surgeon and myself as a player.”

“I know what my body can do,” Meredith added. “I’m a fast healer, and I believe that if I put the work in, then at the end of the day it’ll come back around, just like it’s supposed to. … And if it doesn’t, then I wasn’t meant to be here in the first place.”

Saints HC Sean Payton said earlier in the week that Meredith is “way ahead of schedule.”

“He was way ahead of schedule and certainly, where our doctors had hoped, even better,” Payton said. “He’s going to factor in this year.“