NFC Notes: Carl Granderson, Bryce Young, Buccaneers, Panthers, Saints

Buccaneers

The Buccaneers are one of the surprise 2-0 teams in 2023 thanks in large part to the work first-year OC Dave Canales has done to help the offense and QB Baker Mayfield. It hasn’t always been pretty but the Bucs have pushed through some adversity and have played their best offensive football in clutch moments. 

“This feels like a winning team,” Canales said via ESPN’s Jenna Laine. “There was no panic early on, even with the slow start. The guys were just calm. They were like, ‘Yeah, OK, let’s just fix some stuff. Let’s sit down, keep working.'”

So far, Tampa Bay is backing up all the talk from their building this offseason about being able to handle the loss of QB Tom Brady. 

“We turned the page a while ago,” Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles said at the time. “We’re a different team, we know we’re a different team. We move forward that way. We don’t worry about ghosts from the past or anything else. We worry about what we have now and what we have to do to win.”

Panthers

Panthers HC Frank Reich was asked about the status of QB Bryce Young, who was out with an ankle injury in Week 3.

“Don’t know. Don’t know yet,” Reich replied, via PanthersWire.com. “We’ll see how tomorrow goes and then Wednesday, I’ll give you an update then. But I know he’s done everything possible to try to put himself into position, too.”

Saints

• Saints DE Carl Granderson‘s four-year, $52 million max value deal includes an $11 million signing bonus and base salaries of $1.17 million, $7.73 million, and $10.75 million in the new years of the deal, plus a void year in 2027. There’s also a $9 million roster bonus due in 2024 and $2 million roster bonuses in 2026 and 2027. (Over The Cap)
• Granderson’s 2024 base salary is guaranteed at signing and his 2025 base salary is guaranteed on the third day of the 2024 league year. In 2025, Granderson has $5.44 million of his 2026 compensation, including a $2 million roster bonus, vest to guaranteed. 
• There are $2 million annual sack incentives for a total of $8 million in additional possible earnings.