NFC Notes: Taysom Hill, Bijan Robinson, Buccaneers, Falcons, Saints

Buccaneers

• Per Rick Stroud, Buccaneers CB Jamel Dean (concussion) worked with a trainer during practice, as did S Christian Izien (concussion) and G Matt Feiler (knee).

Falcons

Falcons HC Arthur Smith thinks first-round RB Bijan Robinson makes a big impact without the ball in his hands and is a “huge part of our offense.”

“Sometimes, his impact away from the ball can open things up,” Smith said, via ProFootballTalk. “For any rookie, the seasons are long. You’re going to have ebbs and flows. He still has a huge impact on the game. He’s got 700 yards [from scrimmage]. You’re still looking for ways, and you know it’s a long journey. We’ll see how this second half of the season goes. But he’s been a huge part of our offense and he’ll continue to be.”

Smith pointed out they need to balance how they use Robinson over an entire 17-game season and want to be sure they are in a good position to make the playoffs. 

“It’s a long game. Seventeen [games] and you want to play more,” Smith said. “We have the opportunity to do that, even as frustrated as you can feel on Monday or after a game like that. So yeah, that’s the evolution of it. Now’s the time. We’ve got a one-game season. We’ve got to lock in on Arizona and thankfully, we have a bye after that, which will come at a good time. We can take advantage of it. But yes, as we continue to push it here for all of us, we’ll see. With the health of Drake [London], we get him back this week, and we’ll see.”

Saints

Saints QB Taysom Hill commented on the way the season has gone for himself and the team so far and has been earning praise from HC Dennis Allen for his prominence in goal-line situations.

“I feel like the first quarter of the season, we’ve been so close,” Hill said, via Greg Auman of Fox Sports. “You look at a few drives, and it’s a penalty here killed a drive and that type of thing. I think we’ve had penalty-free drives, the ability to keep the chains moving, and that gives you a lot of confidence, and as a playcaller, you have the opportunity to call a lot more plays on your call sheet. The creativity … has always been there. We’ve been sustaining drives, which builds a lot of confidence. I don’t get too caught up in thinking about what the stats are or what I’m doing. At the end of the day, we’re trying to in win football games. I try to take advantage of every opportunity that I get, and hopefully I can contribute to winning games.”

“I thought he was really good,” Allen said of Hill after Sunday’s win. “I thought our plan to utilize him was good, and I thought he was effective when we utilized him. They kind of had a little bit of a plan to try to load it up to stop him, but it’s the stress of every single play that it could be the one that pops. At the end of the day, for us to be able to close a game out like that, down there in the red area, was big. We’re actually trying to get Bink [Saunders] a touchdown in the flat there. They did a nice job, but he took two [defenders] in coverage, which allowed Juwan to get open in the back of the end zone. Taysom went through his progression, found Juwan, and when you execute and do the things you’re supposed to do, generally you get good results.”