Buccaneers
Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles has not had any contact with OLB Randy Gregory after skipping mandatory minicamp, but hopes he will return to the team for training camp.
“We have not had any conversations,” Bowles said, via PFT. “I expect him to be here, but we’ll see.”
Falcons
Atlanta believes it got a steal in the fifth round in rookie LB JD Bertrand.
“The No. 1 thing that popped out to me when I was evaluating JD was how complete his game was,” Falcons ILB coach Barrett Ruud said, via the team’s website. “He didn’t have holes in his game.”
Ruud explained that effort has never been something that Bertrand has lacked.
“When you don’t have to work the effort into guys, it makes your life as a coach a lot easier,” Ruud said.
Falcons scout Ryan Doyle noticed Bertrand and said that he is one of the more complete rookies that he’s seen.
“With some guys, there’s a maturation process from when they come into college,” Doyal said. “This guy was not that. This guy probably came out of the womb fully developed in terms of things that you look for in terms of intangibles.”
Doyle explained why Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman said that Bertrand “set the standard” for everyone else on the roster.
“Just an A-plus human in the community, in the locker room, but you bring it to the football field and the guy plays like an absolute psychopath in the best way,” Doyal said. “He has that dichotomy to his personality, which is really neat to see because you get him off the field and he’s like a marry-your-daughter type.”
Panthers
Panthers LB Shaq Thompson is used to adapting to change and is now embracing it as a leader on the defense for Carolina.
“It’s been a business, you know what I mean? That’s just what business is about,” Thompson said, via the team’s website. “You’ve got brothers leave, and you get new brothers, and you just got to create that atmosphere, that mindset. You’ve got to instill in everybody the energy; you’ve just got to make sure everything that went out and all the stuff that comes in are on the same page.”
Panthers DT Derrick Brown said Thompson is a locker room leader and whenever he speaks, the whole team listens.
“He’s our captain, man when he speaks, his voice is heard,” Brown explained. “He knows he knows the defense in and out, and sometimes he talks to me and asks me questions, and I’m like, don’t ask me that because I don’t need to be thinking about that. But Shaq’s been the captain since I’ve been here, so I still got a lot of respect for Shaq.”
Thompson said he got his first taste of the business side when LBs Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis left. But he explained he was still hurt when LB Frankie Luvu left this past offseason, along with OLB Brian Burns.
“I think the first time was a little tougher because somebody that you came in with, looked up to and played with, you know what I mean?” Thompson said. “I think that was a little tougher, just because I was a younger guy and saw my role models leave and pass the baton or whatever you want to call it. But, the second time still hurt, you know what I mean? Those are my guys. I also played with them for multiple years, you know. They’re my brothers, I call them my family, and it was tough to see them go. But, they got paid, and I’m happy that they got paid, and we’ll see them this year.”
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Does anyone think that this panthers defense can perform at the level that it did last year?