CHARLOTTE — Perspective is everything.
In the last few days, a friend remarked on the Eagles' recent issues and said, "It'll be good to see a team as hurt as we are." Of course, Philadelphia has its share, but if you look at the numbers, the Eagles really aren't, they're just missing names you know. And having their right tackle retire and trading their center in midseason is an upheaval, for sure.
And while it was cool to go to practice Tuesday and see Taylor Moton, Tershawn Wharton, and Trevor Etienne back, the Panthers still aren't what you'd consider healthy. In case you forgot over the bye week, Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson are on IR, plus the new ones they have to monitor like Monroe Freeling, Jaelan Phillips, and Jalen Coker. (All of the Jalens, what is this the NBA?)
But yes, people coming back is always helpful. Especially the people they have.
If Moton is ready to go, there's potentially an immediate spot for him in the starting lineup, while Wharton adds a different element to the defensive line (and that's not just a reference to the size of his thighs). His ability to create pressure from inside with his burst is the perfect complement to Derrick Brown, and the kind of pop you like to have against any line, but particularly one in flux.
But dealing with injuries, coming and going, is just the reality of the NFL. Every team deals with it to some degree, and the ones who figure out how to deal with it best are the ones who succeed (like the 5-0 49ers), because it's a long season.
And even in a weekend with no game, there's still plenty of mail, so let's get to it.
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Hi, Darin. An exciting start to the season. From an old guy who lives with chronic deep-vein thrombosis (a blood clot that won't go away), I think Taylor Moton's situation has been under-reported. That might be because he wants it that way. But it's hard to understate how serious a clot in the lung can be. I will likely take blood thinners for the rest of my life to prevent a pulmonary embolism (a clot blocking an artery in the lung). I hope Taylor knows there are people out here who have been thinking about him and who understand what he's going through in a way most people can't. - John, Winston-Salem, NC
I shared John's note with Taylor the other day before he did his first press availability since his diagnosis, and he brightened immediately.
"That's really cool," Moton said with a nod and a huge grin. "Tell John I appreciate that. Some things are bigger than football."
And he's right. This isn't like a broken leg or a torn ligament. This could have been life-and-death stuff, and fortunately, he's OK. He also recognizes that he's fortunate to have the kind of medical care he does, and not everyone is so lucky.
Once he returns to the field, he can make an immediate impact on the team because he's been one of their steadiest and best players of recent years. But he also knows this isn't just about football.
His spirit of gratitude was evident before he got sick, and you could tell it from the way he walked the Earth — looking out for others, expecting accountability, and giving big sweaty hugs to the athletic training staff who took care of him. So now that he's healthy again, that has only increased.
Hopefully we don't all have to go through what John and T-Mo have to appreciate every day, and the people around us. But if it's a reminder, that works too.
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An off week gives us extra time to worry about things we may not normally think about, so here's one that has me intrigued. I understand that we can have 8 "transactions' from the IR back to the active roster PER SEASON. I also understand that Bam Martin-Scott and Etienne were designated as in-season returns up front, so that takes two of the eight transactions, leaving six. So if we have six to work with, we have the following still on IR with return possibilities (omitting Nic Scourton and Chris Brazzell II): Horn, Mike Jack, Jonathon Brooks, Brady Christensen, Xavier Legette, Ikem Ekwonu, Wharton, Moton. That's eight bodies with only six slots open to return this year. That means at least two of the existing will not make it back this year, and let's not forget we will surely have more to add to IR in the coming weeks, so let the discussions begin! Assuming my assumptions are correct (?) - what say you? — Willard, Ocean Isle Beach, NC
It's never too soon to panic, Willard.
And yeah, that's a puzzle. It's also reasonable to think that's part of the reason Claudin Cherelus was waived with an injury settlement a few weeks ago, leaving open the possibility of him returning later in the year, without occupying one of those spots. That does create the possibility that he could sign with another team, but there is enough familiarity there that he might prefer to wait three weeks past his settlement period to stay here.
However, the math does get a little easier. I committed a journalism and confirmed that Moton, Wharton, and Ekwonu would not count toward that eight-player limit, because they're on the NFI and PUP lists, which count separately. The eight-man limit applies only to the guys on injured reserve. It's a technicality, but technicalities are important.
(And, since Etienne and Martin-Scott were designated to return on cut day, they have to be part of the eight. Even if the team decided not to bring one of them back, they wouldn't get an extra spot. So it's Trevor and Bam plus six.)
But yeah, you just spelled out the problem. Also, it's Week 6, leaving open the possibility that at some time in the next 12 weeks, someone else might get injured. It happens.
That scarcity might force them into strategic decisions down the stretch, factoring in the roles of the players in question. If it's Horn or Jackson, a high-end starter, it becomes automatic. Otherwise, you have to consider all the variables. And there are many.
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Hello Darin, I just want to say that it was a great article on Tater Smith, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm an Old Guy also and a football fan all my life and it was great to hear some of the names in your writing that brought back memories of players from the past, l hadn't thought of in years. It was also interesting to learn that he was Tracy's father. When l first watched a interview with him on this site, l didn't know quite what to make of him, but now love the job he's doing with our special teams! Now on to my question. Does Tater travel with the team, or does his job keep him in Charlotte? Panthers Proud Keep Pounding. — James, Millers Creek , NC
He's not always here. He spends most of his time at his home in Louisiana with his wife, whom he refers to affectionately as Miss Dianne. And since his son's here, he always has a place to crash. He is coming in this week for a few and will travel to the game, and they love it when he's here because he has an infectious personality.
Since his role is effectively a consultant, he watches film at home and sends Dave Canales reports on a regular basis. That's the same function Jim Caldwell served the previous two years. It's an over-the-top view that's helpful when you're on the ground coaching at a granular level. And it doesn't require him to be here every minute.
With 55 years of coaching experience, he's earned a flexible schedule. And as a number of people pointed out, it's not just keeping an old guy around to be nice.
"When you look at him, it's kind of like he's just somebody's grandfather," Delhomme said. "But he's just meticulous. You never saw him get too high or too low, and he's just really, really good at football. You keep getting hired like that; those just aren't ceremonial jobs. Guys want him on their staff because there's no agenda, and it's weird to say that, he's hopped around, but he's never looked for the next job, you know what I mean? They keep coming to him, but it's the value that he can bring.
"I don't know, everybody sees him or talks about him... It's Tater, and there's a smile on their face."
He brings great football value because of that experience. He also has the ability to see things clearly, which not every smart person does.
And because it's making the rounds (long snapper JJ Jansen sent it to me), here's a bonus picture of Smith and the 1985 Baltimore (nee Philadelphia) Stars coaching staff. That's him, second from the right on the front row, sandwiched between longtime Panthers running backs coach Jim Skipper, and former UNC head coach John Bunting. Also pictured are former Panthers and current Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio (front row, second from the left), and former head coach Dom Capers in the upper right). The best part is that Tater still has the same haircut, and they can't all say that.
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Hey Darin. Still wearing my FOTM shirt proudly. No question today, just some thoughts.
I know all the clichés: 'next man up', 'Unfortunately injuries happen,' etc. Now for a few of mine: 'Starters are starters for a reason.' 'All starters are not equal.' When we lost Derrick Brown, the front seven imploded. This year we lost both starting tackles before the season started. In the third and fourth games, we lost a starting guard. That's three of the top four offensive linemen. People were asking where the run game was. It takes time for the o-line to adjust, and adjust they did; just look at the fourth game. Then we lost two of the best cornerbacks in the league. The Detroit game wasn't pretty, but when smoke cleared, we had a big W on the scoreboard. What is the difference between the team that lost Derrick Brown and this team? It's the leaders on the field. The strongest leaders aren't necessarily the best players, but are the guys who get a guy who's down on himself, the team, or the situation and lift them up to be the best they can be as a part of this team. Many of these leaders would surprise you because they're quiet and just go out and do their job. — Marc, Indian Land, SC
Sure, any team with Derrick Brown on it is better off. He's one of the best in the league at his job, and you can't just replace that.
But it also speaks to the improved depth around here.
In the past, injuries to starters meant you were playing guys who hadn't played in the league. This year, they were able to sustain being without Ekwonu and Moton because they had Rasheed Walker and first-rounder Freeling sitting here ready.
The depth at cornerback isn't the same, and Horn's another one of those Brown-level players who you just can't replace. But the good news is he's expected to be back before the end of the season, so you just hang on, and trust your leaders, and hope for the best.
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I'd like to know your thoughts on the NFC South being the "bottom-dweller" division.
The talking heads seem to think if your division isn't led by one or two main teams, you're not good enough. The way I see it, the NFC South has historically been the most balanced. I mean, look at last year's records. As I know you like numbers, it'd be interesting to see how the division stacks up against the other divisions from a big-picture view, as opposed to which division has the Super Bowl contender. — Jonathan, Whittier, NC
In terms of combined records since the 2002 realignment, the NFC South does have the second-lowest winning percentage at .491. The AFC East is highest at .517, not a wide gap because over a couple of decades, averages tend to flatten out.
So thank heavens for our friends in the AFC South (.474).
Is it messy? Sure, but it's our mess. This division has, anecdotally speaking, been more tightly compressed than some others. When they're bad, they're all bad, but also when they're good, they're all good. At one point, when Cam Newton, Matt Ryan, and Drew Brees were quarterbacking at the same time, the division was thick with 10-plus-win teams. Other years, when the quarterbacks were PJ Walker or Jameis Winston or Marcus Mariota, less so.
I do think having to fight and scrap your way out of a division like this can sharpen you late in the season. Every division is going to have someone at the bottom, but when you get in a situation where there's a couple of strugglers and a couple of elite teams, there's not that same kind of edge always.
Yeah, let's go with that.
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FOTM veteran here and thanks again for the honor. First of all, super kudos to the GM and his staff, the coaches, and the players for a gutsy win last Sunday night. I figure down nine starters/key players missing from the pre-camp depth chart (Scourton, Wharton, Horn, Jackson, Brooks, Moton, Ekwonu, Legette, Coker) and nationally given low expectations, so an outstanding team performance!!
My question is a procedural one, probably better suited for the coaches, but I figure you can get the answer: how does the communication work during the game for the players to know who is expected to be on the field for a given play call? Offensively, Brad Idzik calls in the play via headset to Young, and with the play clock ticking, how do the players on the field, as well as the players on the sideline, find out so efficiently who is expected to be on the field to execute the given play call? How is it so efficiently communicated, with time on the play clock for the QB to share the play call with the appropriate players and get to the line of scrimmage with time for the QB to scan the defense AND allow for legal player shifts/motions? Same goes for Ejiro Evero and the defense. An amazing process to watch, with excellently executed, disciplined teamwork. Keep Pounding. — Scott, Charlotte
The short answer is, it takes a village.
Once the call goes in from the coordinator, all the coaches on the sideline help police their own groups and make sure they're all on the same page. That's why they're all wearing headsets, so they can hear the calls as they're being made.
So if a call comes in for the defense to be in base personnel, defensive line coach Todd Wash is making sure the linemen are accounted for and aware, and on down the line at each position.
Then the play-callers on the field call the play in the huddle, and Bryce and Devin Lloyd are in charge of making sure everyone out there is together. Within plays, there's communication as well, and having a safety like Nick Scott is instrumental in helping keep guys informed on the back end of the play, where the large spaces can make it more difficult (especially at home when it gets loud).
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Not a bad weekend when you get a chance to relax and two of your three division opponents both lose at home. Not sure if you actually get a bye week, but in case you don't, a couple of questions. With a few questionable coaching decisions/play execution (Commanders and Eagles) do the Panthers set up a time during the week to show and discuss as learning points?
During the bye week do the coaches watch their various opponents' games as they air live or just wait and break down the tape? Keep Pounding! — Tom, Trent Woods, NC
There are really no bye weeks, it never really stops, but it was good to take a nap that my wife feared was going to just turn straight into goodnight when I hit the two-hour mark. I woke up thinking I was in Canton or something. Those in the business usually try to spend as much family time as they can because there isn't enough of it, but they'll peek at a TV if it's on.
Canales actually watches the "TV copy" (as opposed to the All-22 tape) each week as part of his normal preparation.
"That's part of my process weekly," he said Tuesday. "I usually start off with the TV copy of the team that we're playing that week and the reason I like that is because I think the commentators do such a great job of painting a picture of the story — this guy's just coming back from this or that, or this guy is having a historic run, and they let you know more specifics than you would just pick up from studying the All-22 or just looking at a normal stat sheet. There's stories within the story, and I don't know how much that affects the decisions that we make, but it does give me a sense of who we're playing, not just from an Xs and Os standpoint, but where are they at, and you see the faces and you see the zoomed-in face of the coach, you see the zoomed-in face of the quarterback or the defensive player, and it gives you a sense for how comfortable they feel. Is there pressure here? Is there a level of confidence here? So that you get this just alive, just human kind of feel to it."
In short, a vibe-check.
And once they get back to work, of course they do the normal film study in detail, but they'll also use the thematic lessons of the previous week to teach the guys, whether it's how to respond to a weird dynamic in a game (Tracy Smith did a detailed breakdown of the Jags-Eagles finish), or how to handle the expectations of waking up in first place. Canales leaned into that one Monday, but kept going back to the specific football fixes the team needs to make each week.
"That was something we addressed. The goal of our whole group is to win the division, is to win the NFC South," Canales said. "That's a collective vision, a collective thing we're striving to. Let's win the first championship first. It's playing out really nicely. It has nothing to do with how we perform. . . .
"And so while those things play out yesterday, we're fired up about that, but it's going to be about us preparing the right way for the Eagles this week."
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I have many points; please exercise patience:
- What a win over the Lions! Somebody go get Will Lee III a blanket: He deserves it after his coverage job.
- Hope Greg from Charlotte is OK (curses under breath because of vile offense directed at Chuba Hubbard, then shakes head and moves on)
- Love to see a niche Gamecock in Torricelli Simpkins III playing for my pro team!
- Heard you quote Bryce Young multiple times this 'Bag. I remind you of your commitment to me to figure out if Bryce has a baking habit.
Now for my question (long again, but please, the people deserve to hear this story):
My Christian school takes a retreat every fall to Windy Gap in Weaverville (near Asheville, to those unfamiliar with the area), and the juniors and seniors play each other in flag football. Just as with NC State (sorry, not sorry to Thailand Tony), you can always bet on something weird happening in the girls' game. I am a junior, and I helped coach both teams, and this is probably the wildest football story I am aware of. Juniors kicking off, down 4, 30 seconds left. Our kicker was a 5-11 soccer player who had kicked the first three touchbacks in our school's female Windy Gap football history, so the senior return team expected another. She dropped a coffin kick that died at the 2, while a senior stood above it, waiting for it to go into the end zone. Different junior comes down from the kickoff team, scooped up the loose ball (she plays basketball, it was instinctual) and carries it into the end zone. TOUCHDOWN. Do you know if that is the correct ruling, and if anything remotely close to that has ever happened (Muffed punt returns DO NOT COUNT!) in the NFL or college?
KEEP POUNDING, sorry for the (very, very, VERY) long submission, and know that I have been saving this for the bye week. Because the people need some form of entertainment. — Micah, Gastonia, NC
Look at Young Micah out here, doing it for the people. This was truly selfless, or something.
And what you just described was the longest onside kick in football history. Unfortunately, the kicking team can't advance one of those, but they can recover possession. And that's a strong starting field position. You should be able to work with that.
I don't know if Bryce bakes when he's not out there doing TV shows and promotional appearances, but he does cook for himself and others. This offseason, he said he was perfecting his gnocchi technique, and had the grooved paddle and everything. Bryce Young doesn't do things halfway.
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And on that note, let's go lightning round, brought to you by the patron saint of the lightning round Jeff from Fuquay-Varina, to close it out this week.
Thanks again for all of the coverage. Really enjoyed the "Tater" profile today! Question after watching Philly vs. the Jags on Sunday morning: who backs up JJ as our long snapper? Can you ask Tracy to give that guy a few extra snaps in practice this week to work on keeping them low (even though JJ probably won't allow it)? — Ron, Sarasota, FL
One of my favorite football stories is of longtime Peyton Manning play-caller Tom Moore, when asked why he didn't give the backup quarterback more snaps in practice, and he replied: "Fellas, if 18 goes down we're f-ed, and we don't practice f-ed." It's also like practicing fire drills all the time the way Chas Tenenbaum did; all you really do is freak out the kids, and you never know when a car's coming through the door to land on the dog anyway. It's that way in life, too.
There are some people who can, generally the centers but not all of them, and Tracy Smith knows who they are. But it's not the kind of thing you want to speak into existence by talking about too much.
I officially joined triathlon club, and our coach is named Chaz, which was my mailbag name once). — Zach, Evanston, IL
You're such a tri-hard. You remind me of Luke Kuechly when he decided to enter a triathlon, and went to work out at the MAC. Walked into the locker room, looked around and said: "How you doing guys, I'm Luke." Yeah, we know, Luke. Also, two Chaz references in one Mailbag is a new record.
Speaking of, Luke will be back in the booth with us this week in Philly, and there will be swimming, running, and biking in Chicago while someone GETS BACK TO CLASS, ZACH.
I chuckled when a few Lions players dabbed after first downs the other week, which I'm assuming were (literal) nods to Cam. His influence endures. — John, Winston-Salem, NC
THĒ RĒÅŁ ØÑĒŠ KÑØ₩.
Hi Darin, not a question this time, just a bold statement: What a CARDIAC CATS Game Sunday Night. KUDOS to the Fans, Coaches, and players for stepping up and playing the kind of football us Panthers Fans love to watch. I was really nervous about the outcome, even though I know how the Panthers can be unpredictable, and with the numerous injuries. I must say that the rookies and backup players on both sides stepped up and played a hard, well-deserved win over the Lions. I don't know who was cheering the loudest, the fans in the stadium, or me at home in Germany at 0200 in the morning. I will not wake up at 0200 to watch a football game, on DAZN I can always watch the replays in 40 minutes, but I will always wake up at 0200 to watch the Panthers, that is what faithful fans do! Hopefully we can get some of our starters back in Week 6 and continue Pounding and Pouncing. And hopefully cut down on the unnecessary penalties. With that said, GO Panthers, PLUCK the Eagles Feathers LOL. — Kenneth, Stuttgart, Germany
Kenneth is clearly from the future. Watching a football game in 40 minutes sounds like a dream come true. Part of the reason I dig English soccer is I know what my time investment is. In exactly two hours, Tottenham will do something ridiculous in one direction or the other, and I can go about my day.
With the roster dealing with some adjustments and a competitive stretch in the division, what are you seeing from the coaching staff in terms of adapting the offensive/defensive scheme over the next few weeks? Thanks! — Oliver, Sarver, PA
All wishbone, all the time.
Nah, they're constantly trying to build and evolve on both sides of the ball, and the goal is always to perfect your stuff first. But the main challenge is figuring out who goes where. That's a constant adjustment these days. But that's what football is all about.
Oliver didn't deserve that, and I haven't named a Friend Of The Mailbag yet, so he's it this week. See what a little rest does for everybody? Makes everyone happier.
