CHARLOTTE --
It was from his new position coach, Rip Scherer, who brandished a smile and a tackling dummy, turned and flung it at Delhomme and fellow quarterbacks
Scherer's practice drills for the quarterbacks turn their section of the field into obstacle courses. In addition to dodging the dummies, they leap over and dart between obstructions, all while keeping their eyes forward and on potential targets.
With the practice routine altered, Delhomme's 12th offseason became all about learning new tricks.
"No doubt. A ton," he said. "And it's probably more difficult for someone like me, because we've done things a certain way for a while here and now we're doing things somewhat differently to help us, and that's a process, because when you've done things one way for a while, you get used to it. But I think that's also good; that also challenges you.
"Now you've got to retrain your body and learn how to do something new. But if it makes you better, I'm all for it."
No one is above learning a new way to work.
"The greatest athlete on the planet is Tiger Woods, and he's retooled his swing numerous (times). He's the best, so why do you do that?" Delhomme said. "So I know for somebody as measly as myself, to work on something new and something like that I think that's great and that's why I'm enjoying this part."
So is Cantwell. The youngest member of the quarterbacking quartet was exposed to Scherer's style before he became a Panther.
"Coach Scherer was able to come down (before the draft) and I was able to have breakfast with him at Louisville," Cantwell said. "We did a private workout, and got to know each other. I really clicked with him right away. I really liked his philosophy in what he was doing."
The proof will lie in the performances to come. Given that Scherer took one-time waiver claim Derek Anderson and turned him into a Pro Bowler in 2007, the Panthers' passers have reason to believe that their unorthodox practice drills will yield game-time results.
BREAKING DOWN THE PASSERS:
THE DETAILS OF DELHOMME'S OFFSEASON are well-documented; he signed a contract extension on April 23 and spent the rest of his working time looking to atone for his performance in the playoff loss to Arizona.
"It will never be out of my memory," he said. "It can be three years from now, and, hopefully, we have a Super Bowl win. That's just kind of the way I am. I like to reflect a lot. I always reflect about the good, the bad and things like that."
The bad was the final act of the season, the five-interception night that echoes through his brain. But the good was splendid in 2008, as he rebounded from elbow surgery to guide the Panthers to a division title, giving the team its third playoff appearance in the four seasons in which he's played in all 16 regular-season games.
Questions in the offseason aren't unusual for Delhomme; he dealt with them last year as he recovered from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. But arm strength and pass velocity aren't the unknown issues they were last year.
"It's great. It's something I never think about," he said. "Certainly my workout routine and whatnot is still different than what I've done in the past because of the elbow. But it's something I've embraced. It feels good. It's something that I don't think about, and that's the best thing."
Which frees his brain to focus on what happened in January, and what he believes he can do to rebound from it.
McCOWN HAS THE BENEFIT of a full offseason with the Panthers; last year he didn't join the team until the final cutdown, when he arrived in a trade with the Miami Dolphins on the weekend the roster was pared to 53 players. Delhomme's good health last year ensured that he remained the No. 2 quarterback for the entire season.
McCown was limited to mop-up duty in Weeks 4 and 5 against Atlanta and Kansas City, respectively, and didn't throw a pass in 2009. But he started nine games with the Oakland Raiders in 2007 and has started 31 times since 2003, his second season in the league.
UNTIL McCOWN ARRIVED, Moore was the Panthers' No. 2 quarterback, entering the first three preseason games last year after Delhomme's work was complete and starting the August finale against Pittsburgh. But he left that game with a leg bruise and suffered a hairline fracture to his fibula six days later in practice, thrusting McCown onto the second team for the remainder of the season.
Moore remained as the emergency No. 3 quarterback, and his second season as a Panther turned into something of a developmental campaign, with his tosses limited to practice and pre-game warmups.
"He's still learning this system," Delhomme said.
But he is the only quarterback on the roster other than Delhomme to start for the Panthers, and his brief starting experience in 2007 -- a 2-1 record with wins over a pair of playoff-bound teams -- stands as a confidence-building glimpse into Moore's potential.
CANTWELL, THE ROOKIE IN THE GROUP, fits well in the quartet. Like Moore and Delhomme, he broke into the league as an undrafted free agent when the Panthers signed him in late April. That isn't necessarily how he wanted to break into the league; heading into his senior season he foresaw a place in the draft. But he isn't fretting about where he landed.
"Ever since I started playing, I always treated each season like it was a new beginning," Cantwell said. "I would have liked to have had a better year than what I had last year at (Louisville), but it's a new time this year and it's a great opportunity. I'm excited to be here."
Cantwell described his first exposure to the NFL at minicamp as "like a hurricane," but he found a degree of comfort during the four weeks of OTAs.
"You come in here with the vets and everything is at their pace," he said. "You're trying to learn a new playbook; you're trying to learn new defensive schemes and what they're running on the other side of the ball. It gets crazy, but you come into OTAs, you settle down a little bit and you get to repeat everything you did in minicamp, but at a slower pace. I definitely felt more comfortable out there."
And, he hopes, comfortable enough to handle the pace of what beckons in August.
