Chris Reed details his journey through COVID-19

[Sir Purr]

NEWS AND NOTES


— On a conference call with Charlotte media Wednesday morning, Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury said he's impressed with the Panthers' defensive improvement from Week 1 to Week 3.


"You can tell they're understanding the scheme," Kingsbury said. "They give you multiple looks, and everybody gets involved."


— Kingsbury and Panthers head coach Matt Rhule competed against one another in the Big 12 when Kingsbury was Texas Tech's head coach and Rhule was at Baylor. Kingsbury's final game at Texas Tech was a 35-24 loss to Baylor in November 2018.


"He's a phenomenal coach, even better person, too. He's one of my favorite people I've met in coaching," Kingsbury said. "He literally texted me an hour after the game when it came out I was fired and said, 'Hey man, I'm sorry about that.' And was genuine about it, I mean really felt bad that I lost my job because they beat us."


Added Rhule:


"He's a great guy. I was sad for him when he got fired. I thought he was a great coach and had done a lot of great things at Texas Tech. But I considered him a friend and a guy that I really liked and liked being around."


— Last week, the Panthers practiced later in the afternoon on Thursday to help prepare for the later body clock start time on the West Coast. While Sunday's game will kick off at 1:00 p.m. ET, Rhule elected to keep the late start for this Thursday's session.


"I liked the effect that had on our team," Rhule said. "Guys were able to maybe take their kids to school, guys were able to come in a little later. I liked the recovery aspect it provided for our team. And honestly, I think it helped the coaches. It gave them a little more time to get ready for that Thursday practice."


— The Titans' COVID-19 outbreak has shut down in-person activities for the organization until at least Saturday. That's added an element of urgency around the league to ensure teams don't get complacent with protocols.


"We do kind of all have to be our brother's keeper as we go through this year and make sure we're safe so that when we step on the field on Sunday, we can keep the other team safe," Rhule said.