NFC South Notes: Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers, Saints

Buccaneers

New Buccaneers HC Bruce Arians says he got the itch to return to coaching in Week 1.

“It started actually in the first game,” Arians said, via AzCentral.com. “I knew I was going to miss the players and the locker room. But during Pittsburgh and Cleveland, the first game and the production meeting, seeing the guys and it grew and grew and grew.

“By Week Eight, I was at practice, the defensive back messed up. I went to correct him and said, ‘Oops, this isn’t my team.’ . . . It was growing each week how much I missed the locker room and the arena.”

Arians reiterated that the “stars just kind of aligned” for him and members of his former staff to meet up in Tampa Bay.

“The stars just kind of aligned,” Arians said. “I wasn’t sure one would open that I would want and I actually said no to a couple. And then knowing Jason [Licht], those in the Glazer family close to my grandson, and then Todd’s [Bowles] available, Keith’s [Armstrong] available, Byron’s [Leftwich] available, the whole staff is available. It’s like, ‘You’re supposed to do this, this is like a sign. You have to do this.’ ”

Falcons

• Ian Fitzsimmons reports that Alabama is hiring Falcons’ assistant OL coach Kyle Flood as their OL coach.

Panthers

• The Carolina Panthers announced Friday that they’ve hired former Packers offense/pass game coordinator Jim Hostler as their new WRs coach.

Saints

Saints RB Alvin Kamara has made it clear that he wants the team to re-sign veteran RB Mark Ingram this offseason.

“I want him to be here. I want him to be here. I’m just gonna go ahead and say he’s gonna be here,” said Kamara.

Kamara rejects the notion that they can easily replace Ingram’s role in their offense.

“He brings a certain energy and a certain feel to our offense,” Kamara said. “He’s been here, he’s one of those guys that’s a staple in this community, in this city and on this team. When he wasn’t here, he was definitely missed. It was kind of like a void. Just kind of like that presence that you know that something’s missing, but you don’t know quite what it is.”

Mike Triplett points out that the Saints tried and failed to find an adequate replacement for Ingram to open the season while he served his suspension. The Saints used a sixth-round pick on Boston Scott and signed a number of backs including Jonathan Williams, Terrance West, Shane Vereen and Mike Gillislee leading up to the season, but none panned out.

We have him featured in our Top 50 – 2019 NFL Free Agents list.