Falcons
Falcons QB Kirk Cousins is under contract through 2027 and will count for $57.5 million against the cap next season. Atlanta HC Raheem Morris said “everything is on the table” for Cousins’ future.
“We will all sit down at the end of the season and have those discussions and talk about those things. That will certainly be a part of it,” Morris said via the Athletic’s Josh Kendall. “We planned on the amount of years we put in his contract and hopefully potentially more. We will see where that goes but that is definitely up for discussion. I never thought he wasn’t a valuable starting quarterback. He just didn’t play that way at the end of last year when we needed it most and that’s what forced me to make the switch.”
Panthers
Panthers HC Dave Canales said LT Ikem Ekwonu should be able to play next weekend and considered him day-to-day.
“He made it through the game, he was battling out there,” Canales said, via Panthers Wire. “And we can kinda sense that there was some stuff going on. But in the post-game evaluation, and started doing tests on him, there’s something in there. There’s something going on with his knee. So we had to make sure we took care of him today. He’s gonna be day to day. We’re gonna look at him tomorrow, see if we can get him out there to practice. But we’re not really sure right now. We’ll go through it, make sure we do all the testing that we need to and do the right thing by Ickey.”
- Canales added G Robert Hunt (biceps) is still considered week-to-week, and they feel he isn’t ready to be designated to return, per Mike Kaye.
Saints
The Saints are thin at running back going into Week 16 without Alvin Kamara, Devin Neal and Kendre Miller. New Orleans RB Audric Estime said he is staying ready for his opportunity.
“Even though I’m not getting the game reps, I take as many practice reps as I can, because you never know when you’re going to need it in the game, if someone goes down, like Devin did,” Estime said, via Katherine Terrell of ESPN. “[If] your number is called, you’re going to have to be able to do that job as well as the guy who’s supposed to do it.”
Saints HC Kellen Moore has been impressed by Estime and fellow RB Evan Hull.
“Been really impressed with those guys since they got here,” Moore said. “They were quickly called upon to contribute in some fashion. They were ready. They’ve taken advantage of every opportunity. I think Joel [Thomas] is one of the best running backs coaches in the league, so he prepares these guys as good as anyone I’ve ever been around and so these guys are dialed.”
New Orleans WR Kevin Austin Jr. has also filled in for WR Devaughn Vele after he suffered an injury. Second-round QB Tyler Shough is proud of the way Estime, Hill, and Austin stepped up.
“I was really proud of how everybody stepped in [those] roles and nobody blinked,” Shough said. “Audric, Evan, Kevin, all those guys, nobody blinked. They stepped up and made plays. So I think they’ll be great for us.”
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