NFC Notes: Kirk Cousins, Trevor Penning, Buccaneers, Falcons, Saints

Buccaneers

• According to Rick Stroud, Tampa Bay believes OLB YaYa Diaby avoided a serious ankle injury after his MRI and x-rays were negative.
• Stroud adds Diaby is not expected to play in the preseason but the plan is to have him ready for Week 1. 
• According to Aaron Wilson, the Buccaneers worked out DE Taylor Upshaw today but he wasn’t immediately signed to a contract.

Falcons

Falcons owner Arthur Blank addressed the tampering charges for the team’s pursuit of Kirk Cousins this offseason that resulted in fines and the loss of a fifth-round pick. 

“So, the tampering situation, we were advised by the NFL that we didn’t dot every ‘I’ and cross every ‘T,’ despite our attempt to do that,” Blank said, via Pro Football Talk. “There were a couple of procedural mistakes, I think, that were made by the organization. We fully cooperated with the NFL, as we always do in any sort of investigation. They found there were certain things were deficient in the way we handled things with Kirk. We’ve addressed those things internally.

“Find something that’s a problem, you fix it and make sure it doesn’t happen again, and that’s our attitude about it. The NFL is certainly doing their job and doing it well.”

Saints

Saints OT Trevor Penning says he trained with former New Orleans LT Terron Armstead this offseason. 

Penning explained that he really focused in on his “technique” and “the mental side” of playing tackle. 

“A lot of technique. A lot of technique,” Penning said, via SaintsWire.com. “A lot of the mental side of it, kind of like a plan, was what he was trying to help me with. Kind of develop a plan before you even get to the line of scrimmage. Kind of ‘What you’re going to do to them to not let the rusher dictate what you’re going to do?’ A more offensive approach, being the guy who sets the tone over what he’s going to do.”

Penning added that he feels encouraged by how the first five days of practice have gone for him. 

“There’s always work you can do. So far I feel like I’ve been a lot more comfortable, even from years past and even the spring. I think so far I’m doing some good things, obviously there’s still a ton of stuff I can improve on but I’ll take that day by day. Just keep improving every day,” Penning said.”