Falcons
- Falcons new DC Jeff Ulbrich was asked how his relationship with HC Raheem Morris will be different since both have improved since they worked together in 2020: โMy core principles are the same, my football brain is in a different place.โ (Tori McElhaney)
- Ulbrich emphasized pressuring the QB and the pass rush as a whole: โItโs a priority. Itโs something that has to be fixed.โ (McElhaney)
- Regarding his time as the Jets interim HC, Ulbrich admitted fault in his lack of delegations: โThere is an element of a failure for myself in that way because I didnโt delegate it, I didnโt. I just took it all on myself. In my mindโs eye, I was trying to create continuity and I didnโt want to fracture the staffโฆ I thought the best thing for me to do at that point in time was just try to keep everybody in the same role that they had just so we could keep things rolling โ and it wasnโt the right thing to do.โ (Richi Cimini)
- He continued: โAs I look back, I should have delegated, I should have given the defensive coordinator responsibilities to someone else and because itโs just, in my opinion, it is too hard, especially when itโs thrown on you in the middle of the season.โ (Cimini)
- Ulbrich was asked what he learned during his time in charge where he could see how the team ran from a different lens: โI learned even more than I knew the value of truth tellers on your staff. I think sometimes as an assistant coach you take it as, โIโm going to eliminate every problem from the head coachโs table so he can thrive and do his thing,โ when in reality there are certain things that need to be taken off the head coachโs table but there are certain things that need to be on his table.โ (Zack Rosenblatt)
- He touched on the way things were different when he took over as the head coach: โA lot of times what I found in the interim role was that even though it was interim, I felt the shift in the way people talked to me and treated me and what they said to me. The lack of truth sometimes was really detrimental. It reinforced the idea that Rah is going to need me in that way to eliminate some of the blind spots he might have.โ (Rosenblatt)
Panthers
Former Panthers TE Greg Olsen commented on the turnaround that he saw from QB Bryce Young over the course of the 2024 season.
โI had him in the Cowboy game, (which) wasnโt one of his better games since he took over,โ Olsen said, via Joe Person of The Athletic. โBut the overall sample size when he took back over for Andy (Dalton), me and Luke would talk about it all the time: He just looks different. We can talk about his feet in the pocket and his release and his ability to scramble and avoid taking sacks and creating second-reaction plays. We can dive into all the play calls and the job that (Dave) Canales has done and the offensive line. Thereโs probably a million reasons. I think the No. 1 reason is he looked like he was back playing the style of ball heโs played his entire life.โ
โThe Bryce we saw when he took back over is making those plays in the pocket,โ Olsen continued. โHis feet are underneath him. Heโs keeping his eyes downfield. I think he had a lot more confidence in the pass protection. The pocket was a little firmer because of adding those two big (guards) in free agency. It was all of those things, and it looked like Bryce from Alabama. You couldnโt sack him. Heโs not Lamar Jackson, but nobody could get him on the ground. Heโs creating second-level plays. Heโs attacking the ball downfield. Itโs not just swing screen, smoke screen, draw. There would be games last year where we wouldnโt see him throw the ball five yards downfield. He just looked more confident in himself, the scheme, the people around him. Iโm happy for him. He does it right. Heโs a kid that I want my boys to look up to. I want them to model themselves (after). He could have quit. He couldโve gone in the tank. He couldโve folded. The bounce back that he took was one of the best stories in football. It represents everything we want to teach our kids about resiliency, just the ability to keep going.โ
Panthers
Following a strong end to the season, the Panthers hold the No. 8 overall pick in the upcoming draft with holes on the defensive side of the ball. Carolina GM Dan Morgan explained why heโs hoping other teams become enamored with this yearโs QB class.
โObviously, with being number eight, you hope that two quarterbacks are in that top eight, so some players drop that you like,โ Morgan said, via Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer. โHopefully, thereโs some more quarterbacks through the process that kind of keep getting elevated. Maybe thereโs a team that really likes another quarterback thatโs not in the top-two mix. Thatโs just going to give us a better player at number eight.โ
Morgan is leaving all options on the table as of now, including a trade-down.
โI think everythingโs on the table, like I always say. Obviously, depending on whoโs on the board at number eight, thatโs always going to be option โ to trade back.โ
Ahead of an important draft, Morgan explained the type of people they look for when evaluating prospects.
โObviously, weโre looking for passionate football players. Guys that just love playing the game, and kind of have a little bit of an edge to them, too. So, I think when youโre interviewing these guys, youโre just getting a sense of, โIs that passion coming through in what heโs saying? Does the guy have a little bit of an edge with some of the stuff that heโs saying or are you kind of reading through it as a bit of fakeness?โ I think itโs just really getting a feel for the guy and what heโs made of.โ
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