NFC Notes: Kirk Cousins, Jonathan Brooks, Adam Thielen, Falcons, Panthers

Falcons

• ESPN’s Dan Graziano and Jeremy Fowler reiterate they don’t get the sense anything has changed with the Falcons’ plans at quarterback since April. Veteran QB Kirk Cousins remains the starter despite his cold stretch and first-round QB Michael Penix Jr. is the quarterback of the future, which remains undefined about when it will start. 
• That said, both believe the Falcons will weigh their options for how to proceed after the season is over, with Atlanta’s record and the performance of both quarterbacks — on the field for Cousins and behind the scenes for Penix — factoring into the decision. They could keep the status quo for another year or look to trade Cousins and turn things over to Penix. 
• The Falcons worked out five guards this week, including Wyatt Davis, J.D DiRrenzo, Joey Fisher, Willis Patrick, and William Sherman, per Aaron Wilson.
• Falcons HC Raheem Morris said he’s still supportive of Cousins despite their four-game losing streak: “It’s our job and my job to support him at the highest level. I feel like he’s going to come out of it and go on a run.” (Josh Kendall)

Panthers

• Panthers RB Jonathon Brooks said his right knee gave out when making a cut and there was nothing he could’ve done to avoid his injury: “It happened on the cut. I don’t know, it just happened. There’s nothing I could do, looking back on it.” (David Newton)
• Panthers WR Xavier Legette said he will likely undergo surgery to repair ligaments in his left wrist following the season, via Joseph Person. 

Panthers

Carolina has lost three close games in a row to playoff-hopeful teams after getting their first two wins of the season. Panthers WR Adam Thielen knows all about one-possession wins from his time in Minnesota and has faith that these close games will eventually go their way.

“It always turns around right when you, if you do things the right way,” Thielen said, via Kassidy Hill of the team’s website. “You handle the adversity the right way, you just keep going to work, eventually the tides will turn. And you just have to keep finding a way to talk about it. Look over those situations, talk about the situations and then at the end of the day, execute.”

Carolina HC Dave Canales wants them to control what they can to get these results to sway in their favor.

“We need to find a way to win these games, find a way to close it out and so that for us, it just, it’s always about us,” Canales added. “It’s about, it’s about making our tackles, making our catches, it’s about taking care of the ball. It’s about making our kicks, all the things that we can control.

“If we can control the controllable, the plays that are supposed to be made, then it’ll give us a lot more success and that has to be the mentality of the group. Like, ok, yes guys, we’re going to be in these games, let’s find a way to finish, and that’s the urgency that we have as a group.”