NFC South Notes: Falcons, Panthers, Saints

Falcons

An NFL source tells Jeff Schultz of The Athletic that there were concerns about Todd Gurley‘s surgically repaired left knee when he came out of Georgia.

When asked how bad Gurley’s knee is now, the source told Schultz: “Very bad.”

“Once a player has an arthritic condition, you don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s different for every person. You’re sort of playing Russian roulette because you never know how fast it will accelerate,” Schultz’s source said.

• Falcons re-signed CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson. (NFLTR)
• Falcons signed WR Laquon Treadwell. (NFLTR)
• Falcons signed OL Justin McCray. (NFLTR)

Panthers

• Panthers WR Pharoh Cooper‘s one-year, $1.21 million deal includes a $300,000 signing bonus and a $910,000 base salary. (Aaron Wilson)
• Panthers G John Miller‘s one-year, $4 million deal includes a $2 million signing bonus, $1.79 million base salary and per-game active roster bonuses up to $160,000. (Wilson)

Saints

New Saints WR Emmanuel Sanders said the possibility of winning another Super Bowl was a big reason for him signing with New Orleans. 

“Ultimately, the goal is to try to bring a Super Bowl to New Orleans, and that’s the reason I signed that deal. I know I’ve got a great chance of winning another Super Bowl with the New Orleans Saints,” Sanders said, via Katherine Terrell of The Athletic. 

Sanders figures to be the Saints’ No. 2 receiver, but he says he’s open to playing whatever role HC Sean Payton deems necessary to help the team win. 

“For me, it’s really about what Sean Payton wants me to do,” Sanders said. “At the end of the day, I’m here to do whatever I’ve got to do. I’m a player that if you tell me to go block, I’ll go block. If you tell me to run this route, I’m going to run it and I feel like I’ll have success in doing it because I put a lot of work in, and I’ll stand on my work ethic alone. If I don’t know how to do it, I’m going to work at it and work at it until I get it. …

“I don’t know how they’re going to use me, I haven’t even gotten into the details of Xs and Os with Sean Payton or Drew Brees. I’m looking forward to knowing how they’re going to use me and seeing how it fits. I think, regardless, I’ll be a good fit.‘”

• Saints QB Drew Brees‘ two-year, $50 million deal includes base salaries of $2 million and $25 million, a $23 million 2020 roster bonus and two voidable years to spread out the cap hit. Brees also has no-tag and no-trade clauses. (Albert Breer)
• Saints signed S D.J. Swearinger. (NFLTR)