NFC Notes: Panthers, Rams, Washington

Panthers

Panthers QB P.J. Walker said he is trying to use the same focus as when he was a leading candidate for the XFL’s Most Valuable Player award in 2020. Walker will have fewer chances than expected, as the team signed Cam Newton to presumably start the rest of the season. But it appears Walker will get the nod in Week 10 against the Cardinals. 

“I’m going to just revert back to when I played in the XFL, to be honest,” Walker said, via Darin Gannt of the team’s official site. “I had a lot of fun, enjoyed the moment. I’m extremely excited, but when I go out there, I want to stay extremely excited, because the guys around me need that energy, need that juice, and I want to bring it on Sunday.”

Panthers RB Christian McCaffrey had high praise of Walker’s presence in practice this season. 

“He’s so much more than just that game,” McCaffrey said. “I see him every day in practice; I see how he works, just talking to him about what he sees and how he sees it. Just like any position, when you have someone new come in, you want to get comfortable with him. But he’s got great poise, knows the plays really well obviously, and he’s a great leader.”

Rams

Rams QB Matthew Stafford said he wasn’t really surprised by the team signing WR Odell Beckham Jr. and acquiring OLB Von Miller given Los Angeles is an “enticing city to play in.” 

“Nothing really surprises me anymore to tell you the truth,” Stafford said, via ProFootballTalk. “I know that this is an enticing city to play in. This is an enticing an organization to come play for. We have a bunch of other great players on this team — AD, Jalen, Cooper, all those guys. Great players. So it’s exciting for other people to come in and play with those guys. So, I’m just happy to be a part of it.”

Stafford is confident that Beckham will earn his role in their offense and get “those opportunities” for targets. 

“I’ve played with a bunch of good (receivers) in my career, and he’s up there,” Stafford said. “He’s a talented guy. It’s one of those things where everybody on our team carves out their role. They do a great job of figuring out what that role is going to be and going out there and proving it — both on the practice field and in games — and then getting those opportunities. I know he’ll do the same. There’s a lot of time between now and that. We’ve just got to make sure that we’re on the same page, go out there and play ball.”

Washington

Last year, the Washington Football Team entered the offseason with a ton of optimism, as despite a 7-9 record they made the playoffs and pushed the eventual champion Buccaneers to the edge in the wildcard round. Washington HC Ron Rivera was as optimistic as anyone but he cautioned that Washington wouldn’t just be able to pick up where they left off in 2021. So far, the team hasn’t gotten the message and it’s led to a 2-6 start as they prepare to play Tampa Bay again. 

“That’s probably my biggest frustration,” Rivera said via the Athletic’s Ben Standig. “That in spite of the expectations, I just kind of had a feeling that we felt we were going to be able to pick up right up here. That’s not how it works in this league. … If you’re not very good at the basics, you’ll struggle because you will have nothing to fall back on. … You have to do those details because there’s too many good football players in this league and they’ll find you making a mistake and they’ll exploit it. I think that’s the lesson I was hoping we would learn (after last season).”