NFC South notebook: Kamara’s arrest, Panthers nab Wilks, Buccaneers retain Leftwich

The biggest NFC South headlines from SB Nation blogs

Let’s take a look around the NFC South and check out the latest SB Nation news and notes revolving around each team, starting with our Carolina Panthers.

Carolina Panthers

In Charlotte, the Panthers have been busy adding bodies to their coaching staff, hiring former Panthers defensive coordinator and Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks as defensive coordinator.

The Panthers also hired 72-year-old Paul Pasqualoni as the new defensive line coach. The former Syracuse head coach spent the past two seasons as a special assistant to former Florida coach Dan Mullen. Pasqualoni also served as Connecticut’s head coach from 2011 to 2013, and as the Dolphins’ defensive coordinator from 2008 to 2009.

We also unveiled the mock draft tracker, which was populated by 31 mock drafts at the time of publishing. At that time, just over half of all mocks (51 percent) had the Panthers taking an offensive lineman. The most popular choice was Mississippi State tackle Charles Cross, followed by Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett.

Do you know how to fix the Panthers? Well, our Mick Smiley took a stab at that seemingly gargantuan task over two parts. You can check out part one, which focuses on re-signings and free agent signings. Part two focuses on the draft and the coach.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Over in Bucs land, offensive guru Byron Leftwich appears to be staying put in Tampa Bay. But another face appears to be moving on, as the Jacksonville Jaguars are naming former Bucs assistant Mike Caldwell as their defensive coordinator.

Meanwhile, Bailey Adams checked out the 12 most memorable games of the Buccaneers’ Tom Brady era in a fun piece. Adams also, quite correctly it would seem, opined that Without Tom Brady, the Bucs are now left to rediscover their identity.

Finally, Evan Wanish asks whether Blaine Gabbert is the Buccaneers best option at quarterback, while David Harrison did some good work covering the Senior Bowl’s offensive and defensive prospects.

Atlanta Falcons

In Atlanta, The Falcoholic put out some good stuff this past week. Let’s start with owner Arthur Blank discussing the futures of young receiver Calvin Ridley, quarterback Matt Ryan and 2022 star player Cordarrelle Patterson.

Allen Strk detailed the long journey back to glory for former Falcons Super Bowl participators Raheem Morris and Ricardo Allen. Meanwhile, Dave Choat argued that turning Kyle Pitts into the red zone weapon he’s meant to be is a Falcons priority in 2022. Choat also asks how many Pro Bowlers will the Falcons have in 2022, which feasibly should be more than in 2021.

Evan Birchfield did a piece on returner Brandon Powell, a former Falcon who credited Ricardo Allen and Julio Jones as influences in his career. Powell is also is launching his own digital community focused on financial literacy, a pretty awesome move.

New Orleans Saints

In the Bayou, the big story out of the Saints camp revolved around star everything-back Alvin Kamara, when he allegedly got into a physical altercation in Vegas after the Pro Bowl. Kamara was arrested on one count of battery with serious bodily injury, a felony. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell also spoke on the Kamara situation.

New head coach (and former defensive coordinator) Dennis Allen was introduced by the team, but Gregory Layfield argues that the Saints should have hired an offensive-minded head coach, perhaps like Eric Bieniemy.

The Saints also hired former Syracuse, Bills and Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone to its offensive staff, per reports.

Andrew Bell checked over whether 2022 could be the year Odell Beckham Jr. becomes a Saint.