Buccaneers
Buccaneers undrafted rookie DB Shilo Sanders explained what it was like to get the call from Tampa Bay after going undrafted in the 2025 draft.
“I was on the stream because I streamed the whole draft,” Sanders said, via ESPN. “So I was like, ‘Alright y’all, I got to go talk to [my father], I got to go get on a team real quick, I’ll be right back.’ So I left. As soon as I walked down the stairs, my agent called and said, ‘Bucs offering you a contract.’ And I think I did the Dougie [dance] for about 15 minutes. But I’m just so grateful for the opportunity for them, give me this chance when nobody else would at that time.”
Bucs HC Todd Bowles called Sanders and congratulated him on signing with the team.
“He’s a great coach, great leader, and he’s very knowledgeable about this game,” Shilo said. “To have a guy like that that I could just go talk to whenever and learn football and he also helped me get this opportunity — him and my dad got on the phone right after I signed, and he told ’em that they was interested in me and they can’t wait to see what I can do here — and I just want to make everybody proud, especially coach Bowles.”
Sanders added that Tampa Bay was the first team to call him following the draft.
“The Bucs were the first team to call, and they gave me a chance before anyone,” Sanders said. “So I’m forever grateful to the Buccaneers, and I’m just going to do everything I can to help this team win — everything in my power to help this team win — and that’s all I want.”
Panthers
Panthers HC Dave Canales explained what he saw from K Ryan Fitzgerald and why the team believes in him to potentially be their next kicker.
“First of all, accuracy. But then there’s a lot of power in his leg,” Canales said, via the NY Times. “The ball jumps off his foot. When we’re evaluating the kickers, just looking for the guys that have a process. And he certainly has a plan, certainly has a process.”
Fitzgerald welcomes the competition with K Matthew Wright.
“I think at this level, every year, regardless of the team, it’s gonna be a competition. I love that. I’m a competitor,” he said. “But the key to that is just to focus on myself. It’s me versus the uprights, not me versus another guy. I’m sure that’s the same for Matt’s mindset as well. Just excited to get to work with the guys.”
Saints
Following Saints first-round OL Kelvin Banks Jr.‘s first on-field work with the team, HC Kellen Moore opened up on possibly moving him to different positions. Banks showed his love for the game when talking about his willingness to fill whatever role is asked of him.
“If you love football, it shouldn’t matter what position you’re playing,” Banks said, via John DeShazier of the team’s website. “It shouldn’t matter if you’re out there only on special teams, it shouldn’t matter if you’re just a guard on field goal, just blocking. If you want to be out there on the field, you love football, then it doesn’t matter what spot they put you at.
“The biggest thing I know in the NFL is that the more you can do, the longer you can stay in the league. So the more I can help my team, the longer I’ll be asked to help my team win games.”
“I appreciate them for trusting in me. Obviously, they picked me to kind of go out there and do what I do, so I just appreciate them for trusting me to be able to process that quickly and go out there and learn different positions and go out there and just play football.”
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