CHARLOTTE -- For most players trying to burrow their way onto an NFL roster, the Tuesday tryout process barely offers a chance to rest. You fly into a city, are whisked to club headquarters, shake a few hands, work out and then are shuttled back to the airport, cramming two days of travel into a dozen hours depending on whether you had to make a connection.
Then there's the case of the newest Panther, Keith Lewis. Like many others over the span of a season, he had his tryout with the team Tuesday. But there was no shuttle to Charlotte-Douglas Airport awaiting him after his workout.
"I sat in a hotel, staring at the ceiling," Lewis said.
His was an unusual scenario, necessitated by the process involved with
"It was pretty much trying to figure out what kind of roster spot they had, whether they were going to appeal the suspension or what-not," Lewis said. "I pretty much had to play the waiting game and sat around to see what was going on first. Then I got the call Wednesday."
Lewis knows that he wouldn't be with the Panthers if not for Wesley's suspension and the roster spot it created, but he isn't attacking his workload with the notion that his stay will be brief.
"When I signed my contract, I didn't sign a one-week deal. I signed it for one season. That's how I look at it," Lewis said. "I've got to go out there and do my job, and that's what I signed up to do. I definitely do not look at it as a one-week thing."
But even one week is better than the previous six, when he sat and watched as the sport spun on without him. Arizona released him at the close of the preseason in early September and in the weeks that followed, only the Tennessee Titans offered him a tryout until the Panthers called.
"I'd never been in this situation before. Normally I'm on the roster opening day," said Lewis, who had spent five seasons with the San Francisco 49ers before they released him in February. "This is definitely something different for me. It makes you appreciate every snap and every down that much more."
For the last six weeks Lewis lingered at home in Sacramento, Calif., staying in shape in case opportunity arose.
"I played basketball and worked out in the morning, and then my girl had me doing spin class at night," he said. "It was pretty intense. It actually paid off."
For the next three days, Lewis' work will be more mental than physical. He has five years experience in the NFL -- including some time in San Francisco with Panthers special-teams assistant Jeff Rodgers, which should help ease his transition. But while basic concepts of special teams are fairly common, each team has its own strategic tweaks.
"Everybody has their own philosophy and schemes on special teams. Some teams have you put your right foot up, others your left. Everybody has their own opinion and reason for everything they do," Lewis said. "It's about learning it and going along, because when the ball is kicked, you do the same thing that you would do on any other team.
"There's a lot of ups and downs on special teams. Who knows if I'm the missing piece? Nobody knows that until everybody plays and gels together."
Lewis' tryout might not have been the typical whirlwind, but the next three days certainly will be.
"It still takes time. As a group, these guys have been playing together since training camp. For me to just walk in and expect everything to change, that's ridiculous," he said. "It's a matter of trying to be as much of a difference maker as I can. If I'm (active) this weekend, I expect to do so."
MEANWHILE, WESLEY'S ABSENCE will be felt not just because he's one of the Panthers' punt-coverage gunners, but in the leadership he brings to special teams.
"He's our core guy," said safety
Wesley's hit on Clifton Smith also was a key point, but for the wrong reasons. Smith left the game with a concussion, Wesley was ejected and the Panthers, having to shift players around to account for his absence, were burned for a 97-yard touchdown on a Sammie Stroughter kickoff return.
All parties have moved on. The Panthers signed Lewis to fill Wesley's roster spot, and Wesley apologized to Smith for the hit.
"It wasn't a dirty hit," Teal said. "Dante was out there trying to make something happen, because you only get one play and you've got to try and play your best."
SPLIT SECONDS: Of the four Panthers who sat out Wednesday's practice, kicker
... Fullback
... Linebacker
