49ers

49ers director of player personnel Tariq Ahmad said they came away impressed by third-round CB Upton Stout‘s demeanor and aggressiveness on the field. 

“The thing that stands out most when you watch Upton’s tape is his demeanor and his aggressiveness,” Ahmad said, via The Athletic’s Matt Barrows. “He plays like he loves football. He plays in run support like he loves — loves — getting to the ball. It’s exactly the passion, the mentality we’re looking for.”

Ahmad mentioned they want players who can process the game quickly. 

“That’s who we want to be on defense,” Ahmad said. “We want guys who play fast and process quickly and then have the mentality of being aggressive. We want people who strain to get to the ball. Similar to Malik, who constantly is straining to get to the ball.”

Ahmad said Stout has a big presence in the locker room with his passion and energy.

“We absolutely loved his passion,” Ahmad said. “Every time he walked into the room, he lit the room up. It’s similar to the way he plays.”

Cardinals

• Cardinals WR Quez Watkins reflected on not appearing in any games last year with the Eagles after starting 25 games in the three years prior: “It was an adjustment. But I learned and I grew, and I will be better this year.” (Darren Urban)
• Arizona OC Drew Petzing believes the opportunity for touches will help push the back end of their receiving corps to their best: “We want those guys to push each other so that they each elevate each other’s games, and we get the best version of each player.” (Urban)
• Cardinals HC Jonathan Gannon said a tight hamstring has limited second-round CB Will Johnson. (Darren Urban)
• Arizona RB Trey Benson mentioned he’s put on seven pounds and become more explosive, and said he wants to be a co-RB1 with James Connor. (Urban)

Rams

• Rams’ veteran WR Davante Adams said he feels “rejuvenated” on his new team: “Everybody’s in a good mood. It’s not like a dark cloud over the building. And I’ve experienced that quite a bit over the last few years. So, it’s a glaring difference when you come into a building like this.” (Sarah Barshop)