Buccaneers

• Buccaneers S Antoine Winfield Jr. was voted as the seventh-best safety in the NFL in a poll of coaches and execs around the league: “He’s just so well-rounded and a very consistent player when he’s out there,” an AFC exec said. “Can blitz, cover, rare instincts and always around the ball.” (Jeremy Fowler)

Panthers

The Panthers spent heavily in free agency again, adding OLB Jaelan Phillips and LB Devin Lloyd among others to keep trending in the right direction. Heading into camp, GM Dan Morgan‘s goal is to make the back end of the roster as strong as it can be.

“In terms of the roster building, going into like training camp, we’re trying to make the back end of our roster as good as it can get,” Morgan said, via the team’s website. “Whether it’s adding guys off the waiver wire, it could even be trades during training camp, if we identify a guy that could fit a position of need.”

“I don’t know if the building part of it’s different, but I think that we’re just always looking for ways to make the roster more competitive and stronger.”

Per the team’s website, only 23 of the 91 current players on the camp roster were on the team when camp started in 2024. Morgan admitted it will be more difficult making cuts now than in years prior, but it means their depth is improving. 

“I think looking at the board now, I think it’s a lot harder to cut our team now than it was when I first took over. When I first took over, I felt like we could look at the board and there were guys that you could switch in and out and you’d be fine. But now you look at the board, and you’re like, OK, like we’re starting to gain that depth on our roster.”

“We’re starting to kind of fill some holes, not just with players, but with elite-type players.”

Panthers

Heading into year three with the team, Panthers HC Dave Canales feels more confident making adjustments on both sides of the ball based on what the situation and personnel grouping dictate. He specifically mentioned understanding QB Bryce Young‘s tendencies, and implied handing offensive play-calling duties to OC Brad Idzik will only help him make these decisions.

“The more time we’ve spent with this group, the more we kind of know these are our babies, this is our core, and these other things are complements to what we’re doing in our core,” Canales said, via the team’s website. “That’s been really helpful to know Bryce, to know what he does well, to know, what pressures and coverages that we can lean on with our group, with our guys, with defensive packages for situations, we’ve added a few players, so there’s a little bit of R&D there with how do we get these, how do we get our best 11 on the field, who is that, and having to figure out those things?”

“But I feel a lot more comfortable making those adjustments now. I think that they happen quicker. I have a lot of eyes, a lot of other coaches that are looking for the same things. A lot of those conversations happen more organically, and we can get to solutions quicker.”