NFC Notes: Falcons, Panthers, Saints

Falcons

It took a wild shootout with the previously left-for-dead Panthers, but the Falcons exited Week 8 in sole possession of first place in the NFC South. Which is not where anyone outside of the team building thought they’d be in 2022. 

“It starts with our guys — I really believe that we have an unselfish culture here, and when you come to work and you’ve got a bunch of guys that really just enjoy coming in and doing what’s best for the team, you’re going to find ways to win games,” Falcons QB Marcus Mariota said via Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. “And to have that belief in each other I think is all that you need. You don’t have to worry about what other people think. We always believed that we could be pretty good, but at the same time, we just gotta take it one game at a time. And that’s what’s cool about these guys is they don’t really care, wins or losses, it’s just about improving. If we continue to have that mentality, I think we’ll like where we are at the end of the year.”

Panthers

• NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reports the Panthers are working out RB Cam’Ron Harris.
• Panthers DL Henry Anderson is dealing with a private, personal matter which is why he was played on the non-football illness list but is still hoping to play again this season. (Joe Person)
• Panthers interim HC Steve Wilks confirmed QB P.J. Walker will start again in Week 9 against the Bengals. (Person)
• Wilks added K Eddy Pineiro is not to blame for the loss on Sunday despite missing two game-winning kicks: “One guy did not lose this football game.” (Person)

Saints

The Saints kept themselves in the picture in the NFC South with a 24-0 thrashing of the Raiders on Sunday that moved them to 3-5. Saints RB Alvin Kamara, who was huge in the win and has been one of the key leaders in the locker room, said it was a good first step but more is needed to reclaim their swagger. 

“It’s on it’s way back,” Kamara said, via a transcript from the team. “We had a nice performance right there. You can do it one time, but you have to be able to string it together. We have to do the same preparation for this week. I’m ready for next week. I expect to win every week. I’m not like hip hip hooray right now. I’m like cool. We put it together. Now, let’s see if we can do it again. I’m calling for that. I’m going to have the same message that I did last week. Just because we had a good week this week doesn’t mean that we can fall off or taper down. We have to do the same thing next week and the next week and the next week. Swag is consistency.”