NFL Trade Rumors
To accomplish their goals in 2025, the Falcons will need QB Michael Penix Jr. and WR Drake London to be dialed in together. So far the early returns in the spring have been good.
“[ Penix and London ] were able to connect in the offseason together, and then obviously we’ve been on the grass for a couple of weeks now, but I think it’ll just continue to grow for the limited amount of reps that they did have going into those games,” Falcons OC Zac Robinson said via ESPN’s Marc Raimondi. “And very impressive to see … they might’ve prepped a play one time in practice, and they took it to the field and had success. So, I think it continues to grow.”
London in particular is a player the team has sky-high hopes for. Still just 23 years old, he topped 1,000 yards for the first time last year and is eligible for a contract extension for the first time this offseason. Atlanta has London under contract for two more years after picking up his fifth-year option this May.
“Since [ London ] walked in the door, day one, his makeup, competitiveness — he just keeps ascending,” Falcons assistant GM Kyle Smith said. “He’s got to take that next jump and he’s taken on more of a leadership role and all those things.”
The Panthers signed DT Tershawn Wharton as a free agent this offseason. Carolina DC Ejiro Evero has gotten a strong first impression of Wharton, saying there’s an “aura about him” in their offseason program.
“This guy, obviously, so impressed by this person,” Evero said, via Darin Gannt and Kassidy Hill of the team’s site. “When you first meet him, he’s got a presence about him, he’s got an aura about him. Then you watch him in the classroom; he’s a note-taker, and he’s into it all the time. In the weight room, on the field, this guy has got a purpose in everything that he does. And it’s been really, really impressive to to watch. And we know that he’s coming from a place that had a great culture and played a really good defense, especially on the D-line, so it’s great to add guys like that.
Evero added that Wharton is proving to have a strong work ethic and is a “very versatile player.”
*“That could bring that experience and bring the mentality and that work ethic as well with it and so he’s been great so far. And then when you look at what he could do on the field, I mean strong against a run, he could give you...
