Buccaneers
Tampa Bay re-signed S Jordan Whitehead this offseason after he left for the Jets in free agency in 2022. Whitehead has no hard feelings towards the organization and believes going to New York improved his on-field skills.
“I knew it was business,” Whitehead said, via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. “You want me, and I will help you win games.”
“I feel like I elevated my game going to New York. My coach, specifically (Jets defensive backs coach) Marquand Manuel, just took time to work on my middle-of-the-field skills. We played a lot of coverage. I mastered that because I wasn’t in the box. Now that’s my game. … For me to say I’d rather go get an interception instead of a big hit? That’s changing my game.”
Buccaneers GM Jason Licht admitted they never should have let Whitehead walk in the first place.
“With Jordan (Whitehead), it was a mea culpa, we had to draw the line at some point and I made a mistake” Licht added. “I’m glad we got him back. It was a mistake that I regretted the minute we let him walk.”
Panthers
Joseph Person of The Athletic dove into some of his biggest Panthers’ observations as they get the season started.
- Person begins with WR Diontae Johnson, who loves HC Dave Canales‘ use of presnap motions to create advantages.
- Johnson commented on the massive extensions other receivers in the league received this offseason: “It gives me motivation to keep working hard, keep my head down, keep grinding. The time will come if I can just continue to make plays and be consistent. That’s my big thing — consistency each and every week. The ball’s gonna find you as long as you get open.”
- With the injuries to OLBs D.J. Wonnum and Amare Barno, Person believes GM Dan Morgan will either use the waiver wire or a trade to upgrade the edge rushers.
- Canales also named the following players as players he expects to contribute heavily on special teams: LB Trevin Wallace, LB Claudin Cherelus, S Jammie Robinson, WR David Moore, and RB Mike Boone.
- According to ESPN’s David Newton, the Panthers ruled out TEs Tommy Tremble (hamstring) and Ian Thomas (calf) for Week 1.
- Canales announced that fourth-round TE Ja’Tavion Sanders will start Sunday. (Joe Person)
Panthers
Panthers DT Derrick Brown is remaining humble after being recognized as one of the best defensive linemen in the game.
“Man, to be honest, I don’t think I’m that guy,” Brown said, via the team’s website. “It’s one of those things where I’m trying to get ready for the season, just putting my head down and going to work. I feel like I’ve got a lot left and I’d like to get the longevity out of this game and do wonders and win games here. So, yeah, I’m just as focused as I was my first year to now.”
Panthers C Austin Corbett laughed and said that Brown is not only one of the most physically gifted on the team, he’s also one of the hardest workers.
“You add the IQ, the athleticism, strength, just to his overall size, just like, gosh dang it, what am I supposed to do?” Corbett said. “Even if I beat your first move, all you can do is take a couple of steps forward, and you’re still pushing me. It’s unbelievable strength. We lift together pretty often and it’s just like, I’ve got to kind of hide. Like, I’m working hard here, and he’s just kind of going through his reps; I don’t even know if he knows what his true maxes are. He can just do whatever. All right, Derrick, I get it; it must be nice. He’s a five-star athlete, but he works so hard and has that IQ. To put it all together, it’s like, just give me a break, man.”
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