NFC Notes: Falcons, Packers, Panthers

Falcons

Falcons third-round QB Desmond Ridder doesn’t feel like the speed of the NFL is much faster than what he faced in college and was comfortable in their preseason opener against the Lions. 

“It wasn’t that much faster than college,” Ridder said, via Michael Rothstein of ESPN. “I was just going out here, making my reads and doing what I’m doing every single day out here. I felt like I was comfortable.”

Falcons QBs coach Charles London said he urges Ridder to have “calm feet” when in the pocket and the quarterback has done well to realize when he’s running out of time. 

“We always tell him he has to listen to his feet,” London said. “You want calm feet when you’re in the pocket as a quarterback and when your feet start to hurry up, your clock is probably about to run out. I thought he did a good job of realizing when his time was up or when he needed to take off or when he needed to progress on to his next read.”

Ridder mentioned that he leans on QB Marcus Mariota for advice on different situations. 

“When something’s not right and I know he’s been in that situation before and I just go and ask him, ‘OK, so Coach said this, how do we really want it?’” Ridder said. “He comes back and gives me an answer and just makes things run more smoothly.”

Packers

The Packers opted to move the wide receiver’s meeting into the quarterback room in an effort to get on the same page with QB Aaron Rodgers after he called out the younger players on the roster.

“It’s like a parent. If you hear one thing from your parent but you hear one thing from your friend, you might do what your friend tells you,” Packers WR Randall Cobb said, via Sports Illustrated. “I’ve been saying the same thing that he said in the meeting today. It’s making sure they understand the opportunity that they have and not letting it squander away. Making sure that they’re focused on the little details in everything that we do and seeing the full picture. It’s not always about your route and what you have. It’s how you fit into the play concept and being in the right place at the right time.”

Packers fourth-round WR Romeo Doubs said that Rodgers communicated to them what he’s seeing and where they need to be in certain situations on the field. 

“Aaron spoke to us about what he likes or whatnot based on concepts or what he sees,” Doubs said. “He just wants us to see what he sees, so then that way we can be able to react faster, play faster and just be able to dominate and continue to be who we are.”

Fellow Packers rookie, seventh-round WR Samori Toure, said that Rodgers holds the group to a higher standard and it is expected of them to continue the standard of having elite pass catchers in Green Bay.

 “It was just really giving us advice,” Toure said. “Basically, letting us know that the Green Bay receiving corps has always been held to a super-high standard. All the legends how have been through here, it’s just about us carrying on that standard and stepping up. We definitely took it to heart. As young receivers who are always looking for ways to get better, when the quarterback tells us to rise to the occasion, that’s what we’ve got to do.”

Panthers

Panthers WR Robbie Anderson is saying good things about QB Baker Mayfield after initially not wanting him in Carolina. 

“He’s smart,” Anderson said, via Anthony Rizzuti of USAToday.com. “He’s picked up the offense, like, rapidly. I like his energy a lot. I like that a lot about him. Like his leadership. And his confidence.”