Behind Enemy Lines is a weekly look at Tampa Bay’s NFC South foes every Wednesday. Let’s spy on the Bucs’ division rivals, shall we?

Atlanta Falcons

• When the 2021 season kicks off in September, long-time star Falcons WR Julio Jones will likely be in a different uniform. What new colors will he be wearing? That question is still up in the air, but if Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown has his way it will be the powder blue of Tennessee.

Brown took to Instagram this week with a plea to Jones.

Brown joined his Titans’ teammate Derrick Henry in trying to recruit Jones to Nashville.

• While it appears Jones is on his way out of Atlanta, Falcons head coach Arthur Smith didn’t want to discuss it publicly this week.

“[Players] should speak for themselves,” Smith said. “I’m not going to comment, it doesn’t change anything for us. We understand what our plan is moving forward. We have multiple private conversations with our players and those are conversations that are going to stay private on my end.”

• What will the Falcons get in return for Jones if they unload him and his guaranteed $15.3 million salary? PFT.com reported that the Falcons could have gotten a second round draft pick prior to the draft, but declined to hold out for more compensation.

• It seems the Falcons are preparing for life without Jones, as evidenced by their first-round selection of Florida superstar tight end Kyle Pitts in last month’s NFL Draft. Now the Falcons have added a veteran receiver to their group, signing Tajae Sharpe who played for Smith in Tennessee. Sharpe recorded 92 receptions for 1,167 yards and eight touchdowns while playing in 47 games for the Titans between 2016 and 2019.

• Falcons QB Matt Ryan is a fan of change. Gone are long-time GM Thomas Dimitroff along with head coach Dan Quinn and his staff, who were fired when owner Arthur Blank cleaned house after a disappointing 4-12 2020 season.

Ryan said change is sometimes good.

“There’s a natural level of excitement that comes from it being different,” Ryan said. “And I love Dan and I love Thomas, have so much respect for those guys, and I learned a ton from them. And I think that’s going to serve me better moving forward with a new staff. But there is excitement. It’s a little different. There’s a different energy, a level of wanting to prove yourself, show what you can do, all of that stuff is there. I think it makes it exciting, keeps it fresh for a guy in year 14. It certainly provides plenty of motivation and gives you the energy to get out of bed and get moving.”

Carolina Panthers

• The Panthers think they have found their franchise quarterback in Sam Darnold who they traded for prior to last month’s NFL Draft. Being the overall No. 3 pick three seasons ago in the NFL’s largest market created lofty expectations. But Darnold recently told the Panthers’ website, he still has pressure to perform even after escaping New York.

“It depends on how you see it,” Darnold said. “I’ve always had high expectations for myself, first and foremost. Expectations outside of that, to be honest, besides my teammates and my coaches, it doesn’t mean a whole lot. I think for me, it’s about what we expect as a team, what we expect to win, and for me, it’s about completing the ball and getting the team down the field and scoring touchdowns. That’s all I care about. As long as we do that and I do my job, we’re all good.”

Count Carolina running back Christian McCaffrey as a big fan of Darnold.

New Panthers QB Sam Darnold – Photo by: USA Today

• Carolina began their offseason workouts with OTAs recently, and a couple of high-profile players were seen wearing red, no-contact jerseys. Safety Jeremy Chinn and pass rusher Brian Burns, both had offseason clean-up procedures according to reports. Chinn had a procedure on his knee while Burns had offseason shoulder surgery. Neither was reported as serious and the fact that both were able to be on the field for OTAs is a good sign they will be 100 percent heading into training camp.

• The NFL is hoping for a return to full-capacity stadiums this fall after a disastrous 2020 year that saw mostly empty venues that significantly hurt revenue for teams and the league. The Panthers have already announced what their 2021 season will look like in terms of fans in the stands.

Tom Glick, president of Tepper Sport & Entertainment, recently said that all home games, including the preseason contests, will be open for full capacity with no masks or vaccinations required.

“We’ve been looking ahead to this day and looking ahead to the season for many weeks, preparing to be in this position,” Glick said as reported by the Charlotte Observer. “The change to the state guidelines just confirmed for us, along with our ongoing consultation with local and state partners, with our local health partners, Atrium Health, that this is the right decision for us to be making as we go forward.”

New Orleans Saints

• Who will replace Drew Brees under center and start at quarterback for the Saints in 2021? DraftKings leans toward former Bucs QB Jameis Winston, who is listed as the favorite at -200. Last year’s second string quarterback Taysom Hill is listed at +145 and rookie Ian Book at +3300.

Head coach Sean Payton spoke about the race to succeed Brees earlier this month.

“[Hill] knows and so does Jameis that we’re looking to find a guy that’s going to lead our team this year,” Payton said. “And that doesn’t mean the other guy is not going to have a role. But certainly, it varies. If Jameis is starting, obviously Taysom has a role that expands not only just offensively, but on special teams, etc. And if it’s the other way around, it’s probably a little bit more limited just relative to what Jameis would do.”

Saints head coach Sean Payton – Photo by: USA Today

• Mickey Loomis has seen a lot since 2002 when he became the Saints GM. One of the near constants was No.9 under center on Sundays. Brees joined the team in 2005  and led the Saints to the only Super Bowl win in franchise history in 2010.

But this year will be much different with Brees now in the TV booth and a quarterback battle brewing in New Orleans. Loomis said, while different, it’s exciting.

“Obviously, Drew not being with us is pretty significant. We’ve had a good 15 years,” Loomis said at the team’s golf event on Monday. “Man, it’s been spectacular having him lead our team. And so it’s a different feel, certainly, but it’s exciting as well.”

• Like the Panthers, the Saints are looking forward to a 2021 season with a stadium at full capacity.

“I 100 percent expect full attendance, and everyone rockin’ and rollin’ and cheering our team on to victory. Absolutely,” Saints President Dennis Lauscha told the team’s website.

Lauscha is encouraging Saints fans to get vaccinated.

“Obviously, it’s really important,” Lauscha said. “We’ve got to get these vaccinations to get to herd immunity, at least community immunity, or get us to a comfortable place. As much as we can do to encourage vaccinations, we’ll continue to do it. It’s one of our No. 1 priorities.”