CHARLOTTE — It's almost time, friends, time for actual football.
And when the Panthers go to Jacksonville this weekend to open the regular season, it will be time for the conversation to turn to what it's actually all about.
It's easy in the offseason to get lost in the flashy highlights of passing drills, even the one-on-ones in camp can create a buzz. And what Bryce Young is able to do with a recently shuffled group of receivers is certainly important.
But for the Panthers to fulfill the expectations of improvement that so many people have, it's going to hinge on the less glamorous work up front.
After giving up 65 sacks in 2023, the Panthers went out and invested in guards Robert Hunt and Damien Lewis to go with holdovers Austin Corbett and tackles Ikem Ekwonu and Taylor Moton. Miraculously, things got better.
They're hoping the same is true on the other side of the ball.
But putting a healthy Derrick Brown alongside Tershawn Wharton and Bobby Brown III and A'Shawn Robinson, the Panthers have a solid four-man rotation up front. If that suddenly sound group allows for the kind of jump they saw on offense the year before, they'll be in business. But it doesn't even have to be that dramatic. Simply stabilizing things should allow the results to improve.
How much? We're about to find out. But it's reasonable to think the Panthers are in a better place now than they were a year ago this time.
And now, it's time to find out if that's correct.
As we celebrate that last player's day off before the long season, let's get right to your mail.
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Long-time reader, here. Why, oh why, did the Panthers let Adam Thielen go for nothing? I predict Hunter Renfrow lands somewhere and has a notable year. I think the way they handled these was headscratchingly stupid. Thoughts? — Joe, Sherrills Ford, NC
This is where you have to take the personal feelings out of this and look at it like a math problem.
For starters, the equivalent of a fourth-round pick isn't exactly nothing, and considering they saved a pile of cash to go with it, it's actually a solid return for a 35-year-old wide receiver entering the final year of a contract, who was only going to want to go to one specific place. Considering all those limitations on a potential return, what they got was actually OK.
But when it becomes personal, and you attach a name and a face and emotions to the equation, I get it. It feels weird. The reality is, the Vikings are likely the only team they'd have considered trading him to, and only because he really wanted to go there. The older I get, the more I believe Thomas Wolfe was flat wrong. You can go home again, and home has an incredible pull for certain people, and for those people it's essential.
And while Thielen obviously has value, both on the field and in the meeting room, they had a solid base of talent behind him.
With a pair of first-round picks in Tetairoa McMillan and Xavier Legette, along with a young player who stepped up in Thielen's seven-game absence last year, Jalen Coker, there's a clear path to production that's evident. When Thielen was injured last year and missed Weeks 4-10, Coker stepped into a group that lacked a McMillan and put up 17 catches for 263 yards (15.5 yards per reception) and a touchdown, while running a lot of the same plays out of the slot with a bigger body. (In Weeks 1-3, Thielen had eight catches for 109 yards [13.6] and a touchdown) So it was reasonable to plug him in and think they'd keep it moving.
Of course, Coker's injury in practice last Thursday that landed him on IR did a couple of things. First, it might have turned Joe into a prophet, because Renfrow did land in a place where he could have a notable year. But it also gives them a proven producer out of the slot, which should complement McMillan and Legette well. Renfrow might be 29, and look older than he is, but he knows how to get open in the middle of the field, as was evident in one-on-ones during training camp.
Having that kind of diversity of skill sets creates some interesting possibilities, and you can see how Young could maximize that, considering his ability to spread it around last year.
I understand why there was so much reaction to Thielen's departure, but the key to this remains McMillan and Legette developing. Having a player with his size, speed, wingspan, and hands will add layers to the offense, and point them in a direction beyond the years the 35-year-old Thielen has left. And once Coker returns to the lineup, the Panthers have a solid room, along with veteran David Moore, rookie Jimmy Horn Jr., and camp star Brycen Tremayne, along with young project Dalevon Campbell, the waiver claim from the Chargers, who averaged 19.3 yards per reception in the preseason.
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Observation: Do you expect a return of the visor for Bryce Young this year? It seemed like his game took off last year when he started wearing one. — Michael, East Falmouth, MA
One of my favorite things in football, and in life, is when you approach what seems to be a really complicated situation and it turns out simple.
Considering all the care and attention that goes into equipping and preparing these athletes for maximum performance, you kind of expect the answer to be tied to retinal scans, barometric pressure, cloud cover and visibility, or glare of indoor lights above a certain lumen count.
Or some combination of all those things, plus the time of day, hypotenuse of the shadows, or how much sleep they got the night before.
But nope, it's just vibes.
Equipment assistant Sam Welch is the helmet whisperer, and he'll check in with Young before a practice or a game and ask, "Visor day?"
To which Young will either respond affirmatively or negatively, and a couple of thumb screws to clip the visor onto the facemask and a shot of Windex (diluted with water, at a concentration around approximately 49.8 percent, give or take a hundredth) later, and he's ready to go.
There's a general preference toward the visors indoors, but Young didn't wear one in Houston during the preseason since he was only playing a quarter. He did wear one in Atlanta when he played one of his best games in last year's finale, and since that's the thing we remember, it seems reasonable to keep that mojo.
But the same theory holds for arm sleeves. Some days he'll wear one, some days he doesn't. When he won his first NFL game in 2023 against CJ Stroud and the Texans, he wore the sleeves. And that had coaches pestering the equipment guys for weeks. But ultimately, the deciding factor is "whatever he feels like that day."
It doesn't seem like a satisfying answer to a curious mind like yours, Mike, but a journalism was committed, and there it is.
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Why do they continue with that ridiculous muppet mascot? The first year at Clemson, they had an actual panther. I'm not suggesting that, but maybe bring on an updated, leaner, and ferocious mascot. Sir Purr is a kids' mascot, not a mascot that represents the team. — Daniel, Lewisville, NC
I'll have you know, Sir Purr once shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.
Wait, I'm being told that was the other Man in Black. Nevertheless.
You can say what you want about the football team and the people on it, but any slander of Sir Purr will not be tolerated on this corner, unless you're eager to receive these hands.
Sir Purr is a dark legend, an apex predator, a hunter of the night, an instrument of destruction, as shown here, moments before devouring an unsuspecting photographer.
Disparage him at your own peril.
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Question for Darin: Hey, DG! All this 2015 Content and most recently the "Luke Kuechly punched Tony Romo in the head" video has got me thinking... (Uh oh!) Who are the top 3 most punch...err... villains of that 2015 season? Peyton Manning doesn't count, well, because he was like 40 years old, NFL royalty, and I don't think anyone expected him to win SB 50. Plus, he's great in all these commercials.
Here's mine:
1. Matt Ryan
2. Drew Brees
3a. Odell Beckham Jr.
3b. The Refs. Cam's still not old enough to get that call.
Thanks! — Dan, Venetia, PA
I would never advocate violence against anyone.
I mean unless someone insulted my close personal friend Sir Purr, or something.
So your list can stand.
We have all kinds of cool 2015 content on our YouTube page, from a series of retrospective videos to Cart Talks with JJ Jansen and some of his old co-workers from a decade ago.
And if you're into reading long stories, we have some of those too.
Once we get to practice tomorrow, we'll be looking forward to the 2025 team, but as long as guys like Luke Kuechly are hanging around, there's always the chance for stories in the future.
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Thank you so much for all that you and your team have done this summer to keep us informed. As is my custom this time of year, I visit some of our opponents' websites to get a pulse of what they are experiencing, etc., I can honestly say that there is so much more content on Panthers.com than anywhere else. Whether it's a Car(t) Talk, a flashback to 2015, Happy Half Hour podcast, a Blueprint, or maybe just some random story about a defensive lineman going fishing, you guys are doing an awesome job of really keeping the fans connected to the team and more than just football.
And I really appreciate that, so here's my question. I think it's kind of rare to have a team like you and Kassidy with such great media chemistry as well as linguistic ability to either do a video or a well-written article. So which one would you prefer? If it were your last day and you had to do one last assignment, would it be an interview in front of the cameras and microphones like the Happy Half Hour, or maybe a Cart Talk? Or would it be an article that requires you to commit a journalism? Either way, we appreciate all you do for the people. — Jonathan, Bedford, VA
Thanks, Jonathan, you even stole my line.
Yes, we do it for the people, and we're fortunate to have access to bring you the kind of stories you literally cannot find anywhere else. And that's a responsibility, which is why we don't mind putting in long hours for you, our consumers.
And if it were my last day, I think I'd choose, . . . the one that takes the least time.
(Kidding.)
I've always enjoyed finding strange and unusual stories and telling them to people. Often over and over again. So if someone has a curious hobby, a historically significant relative, an adorable pet, or just an interesting and unexpected anecdote, I'll never mind making an extra call to tell it.
For instance, Coker's in the news lately, and I remember talking to his mom last year about his draft party that resulted in him not being drafted at all. She bought hats for all 32 NFL teams just in case one of them took her son. At the end of the day, she had 31 hats she didn't need, which demanded one more question.
"You kept the receipts, right?"
"Yes, I kept the receipts, and all of them got returned on Monday," his mom, Jenny Coker, said with a laugh. "I mean, let me say that was a big part of the budget, right? Because 32 NFL draft hats, I mean those were not inexpensive. I even made a deal with the Lids guy. Like, you know that I'm probably going to be returning a bunch of these.
"And he was, of course, disappointed because he was making this gigantic sale. But I explained the situation, and he was like, 'Wow, OK, what an incredible day.'"
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Hey Darin, I'm sure this one's gotten asked a lot already, but I'm curious as to why Mapalo Mwansa was waived when (per the other content I read here leading up to cut-down day) there was an exception for the IPP players? After your wonderful article on him a while back, I was really feeling quite vested in his progress. What happened? — Layton, Raleigh, NC
Mwansa, the English accountant turned football player who is living the American dream every day, remains here.
The roster exemption for the International Player Pathway covered his spot on the 90-man offseason roster, as well as the practice squad spot he has today.
But he'd have to make the 53-man roster on his own merits, the way Efe Obada did here in 2018, after three years of bouncing through multiple camps and spending time on the practice squad.
Because he's English and had no background in the sport, Mwansa is learning everything from scratch. And while his early work at the IPP academy was as a pass-rusher, the Panthers converted him to inside linebacker.
So yes, they gave the guy with no experience to speak of in the sport the most complicated job on defense, primarily because at 6-2, 230, he's too small to effectively play on the edge. But he also ran a 4.45-second 40 at a CFL combine, and with that kind of speed and physicality, he'll get people to give him chances.
So he's still here. He actually just found an apartment in Charlotte last weekend, and continues to learn the game he loves. There's enough there to make them want to continue the experiment, but he looks like a guy who could at least become a special teams player in the future, if not more.
He's a long-term project, but one they're interested in working with more.
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So, I have a question about the tush-push, a short-yardage strategy apparently designed to take advantage of Jalen Hurts' extraordinary leg-strength. I remember reading that he can squat in excess of 600 lbs. It might surprise some of your readers to discover that the Carolina Panthers are among only four NFL teams that haven't used that strategy. Obviously, Bryce Young, who does have surprising speed, would not be a good candidate to carry the ball in a tush-push situation. But since the tush-push success rate is in excess of 80 percent, why wouldn't the Panthers utilize this strategy, perhaps with an athletic lineman to carry the ball? Obviously, this would require a lot of practice, but the Chicago Bears pulled it off in the mid-80s with William "The Refrigerator" Perry. Plus, it was a lot of fun. I'd really appreciate your input, Darin. Thanks! — Paul, Charlotte, NC
Dave Canales was always pretty agnostic about the play when asked this offseason at the league meetings, primarily because he knows it's never going to be part of his life as long as Young's his quarterback.
And the main reason they don't try to adapt it to other players is because NFL football is a really hard game to play well, and it requires a lot of work and preparation to be good at it.
So while that's an appealing notion, I'd probably rather put the ball in Young's hands to throw it, or Chuba Hubbard's to carry it, than to try to give a big man added responsibilities that they're not naturally trained for.
But if they were ever going to, and needed that lower-body strength, there are a couple of obvious candidates.
Outside linebacker Patrick Jones II is crazy strong and was filmed squatting 675 pounds during his Vikings days. That's a dude who could move a pile.
But defensive lineman Tershawn Wharton might be a better choice. His max on leg presses is basically as many plates as you can load on the machine. His thighs are the size of redwood trunks, and he can create an incredible amount of force for a man who is generally going to be significantly smaller than the guy who's blocking him. That's why the video of his one-on-ones with road-grader Damien Lewis was fascinating to watch, because you'd think someone who's giving up 50 pounds or so would get pushed around, but he doesn't.
Still, football is a merit-based sport, and if at some point along the way Jones and Wharton proved they were good with the ball in their hands, someone would have given them the opportunity. But it's a fair question, so I'll make Paul this week's Friend Of The Mailbag, and get the appropriate honorarium on the way to him.
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I didn't know NFL players like Mike Jackson use Quizlet! I have been using that app all week to make flashcards for AP Environmental Science! How studious!
Why do the Panthers not have a fullback on the roster? To be honest, I don't really know the difference between a fullback and a running back. I just remember the Panthers had one in Alex Armah and Mike Tolbert for some time and then I have never seen one on the team since Giovanni Ricci was a hybrid TE/FB not too long ago.
Also, what is your favorite cereal? Cracklin' Oat Bran? — Zach, Charlotte
When you reach a certain level of seniority, most breakfast cereals lose their appeal. But I could crush a bowl of Cap'n Crunch with Crunch Berries right now. The adult version is these crazy Peanut Butter Puffins I found at Trader Joe's back in the summer, and those things are also too good to keep in the house regularly because I'd just walk around eating them dry by the handful.
Likewise, there's no real room in Canales' cupboard for a fullback, since this offense really doesn't have a use for one. They use tight ends and wide receivers as blockers in the run game, and that's a significant part of the job description. In the right system, there's still a place for a lead blocker in the backfield, but this really isn't it.
Yes, football players use all kinds of different methods to learn their playbooks. Everyone learns a little bit differently, and appreciating that difference is what separates a coach from a good coach.
And speaking of learning, you know what time it is, don't you? That's right, it's time to GET BACK TO CLASS, ZACH!
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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.
Glad to be back in the Carolinas after five years above the Mason-Dixon Line. I kept my PSls even though I could not attend many games. Really optimistic about the team this year. I noticed we are wearing the white uniforms 10 times this year. I love the white uniforms. I have noticed that the option to purchase a white jersey from the Panthers' website has been severely limited over the last three or four years. Can you help provide an explanation? Thanks, love reading your column, and Keep Pounding. — Joey, Chapin, SC
Welcome home. I think the answer might be as simple as the law of supply and demand. The blacks and the blues are always big sellers, and fans aren't as worried about wearing them when it's hot as the coaches are. But it's a classic, no doubt. So wear what makes you happy.
Hi Darin, it's the end of preseason. Not much is happening, so I have an existential question for you. What is your favorite hot dog for cooking at home? Next question, what is your favorite hot dog restaurant and where? I will be around the Spartanburg area for a week and need some dining experiences. I would really love your suggestions. — JP, Yadkinville, NC
Like breakfast cereals, I don't keep hot dogs around the house all the time because I'd eat them too often.
So when I feel like one, it's an occasion. I am partial to Brooks' Sandwich House on Brevard, but also enjoy the old school places like South 21 (where the onion rings are worth driving for). Spartanburg has a lot of great hot dog places, including the Beacon and Holmes Hot Dogs, but also a lot of cool places where they serve actual food with utensils, like Wade's and Cribbs'.
ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL??? The angst of preseason performance, or lack thereof, the final roster decisions made (knowing it is fluid), gleeful anticipation with realistic expectation...OH BOY OH BOY.....KEEP POUNDING AND PLAY BALL!!! — Westray, Kershaw, SC
What he said.
Let's do this.
