NFC Notes: Tom Brady, Kirk Cousins, Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers

Buccaneers

Buccaneers GM Jason Licht believes that the strong leadership and good mix of players on the roster have kept Tampa Bay in contention after the retirement of QB Tom Brady.

“We have an interesting dynamic here, where a lot of these young players who are still young, they came in 2020 — let’s say Tristan [Wirfs] and Antonie [Winfield Jr.], two of our leaders on our football team,” Licht said. “Their first year was the year that we won the Super Bowl, when we first signed Tom. And they really know no other way to do things than to try and compete for winning the division and winning playoff games. And that’s really bled into all the young players. Then you have like Lavonte [David], who has seen tough times — Mike Evans and Chris [Godwin] who have seen tough times but then saw the difference in what came with adding Tom. And then Tom leaving and then us transitioning with Baker, who is a fiery competitive leader in his own right because of the way he plays. I think it’s been a good recipe. Especially with all of the doubters that we had — thinking that when Tom left we were going to sink to the bottom. I think that has been part of the DNA of this football team, trying to prove everybody wrong. So, it’s been a great recipe here and I hope it continues.”

Falcons

The Falcons will have one of the most unique dynamics in NFL history in their quarterback room this upcoming season with Kirk Cousins and first-rounder Michael Penix Jr. It’s not that the idea of an older veteran and a younger rookie viewed as the future is new, that’s well-trodden ground at this point. But it’s tough to think of another situation where a team spent as much on the veteran before turning around less than two months later and using a top-ten pick on his eventual successor. 

Cousins hasn’t even had a practice with the team yet and is already potentially looking over his shoulder. It’ll be fascinating to see how the Falcons handle this. They didn’t get off to a good start, blindsiding Cousins with news of their plans while they were on the clock at No. 8. However, HC Raheem Morris has said they don’t plan to ask Cousins to mentor Penix. 

“You can’t put that on Kirk,” he said via the Athletic’s Josh Kendall. “Kirk’s job is just to be a professional. Kirk will show Michael by how he goes about his business every single day. It’s the young man’s responsibility to learn from Kirk. Kirk Cousins is absolutely phenomenal. (Penix) is in a position where he can just follow and do the right things.”

It’s also an interesting dynamic to put Penix in, as the 24-year-old has to wait even longer before getting his chance to run a team. At least publicly, he’s taking it in stride. 

“As far as what anyone else thinks about the decision that was made, I have no control over that,” he said. “All I can control is what I bring to this team, and I know I’m going to be a great leader not just on the field but off as well, and I’m going to be a great person and a great teammate as well. I’m very excited to be able to do that.”

Panthers

Regarding his first impression of new HC Dave Canales, Panthers QB Bryce Young said the coach brings a high level of energy and excitement. 

“Yeah, just that energy — just from the first phone call all the way to now,” Young said, via PanthersWire. “He just has that energy, that excitement. He just brings juice every day. That rubs off—not just on offense, on the whole team and really, on the whole building. Everyone just being in here, there’s a different juice, different vibe. And we all kinda have that excitement to be here, to wanna be better, wanna accomplish our goals. It’s super exciting.”

Young thinks it is important to have one consistent voice to lead their offense. 

“That’s huge—just to have one consistent voice and for us as an offense,” Young said. “Obviously, this is new for everyone. Us being on the same page, us being able to ask anyone a question and everyone have an answer and there be the same vision — that’s gonna be huge for our development as an offense.”