CHARLOTTE — Demani Richardson had an interception in practice, but that's not even really new for him anymore.

In fact, the second-year safety's nose for the ball is part of what has him in contention for a starting job.

Wednesday morning, in the first practice of training camp, he was trailing Hunter Renfrow deep and tracked him down on a pass that might have been overthrown. Then he made a play on the Bryce Young pass, triggering one of the first defensive celebrations of camp.

"You know, he's got a knack for the ball," Panthers coach Dave Canales said. "It started last year, so he shows up again on the first day with an interception on a ball that was slightly overthrown there, and he went from the middle of the field and made a great play on that."

There's a starting job open opposite Tre'von Moehrig, and Richardson's stating his case.

He got a lot of playing time last preseason (over 100 snaps in three preseason games) and had a pick against the Jets in addition to a number of plays in practices and joint practices. He started the year on the practice squad but was promoted before the end of September.

He started five games last year in the regular season out of necessity when some veterans were injured, but didn't look completely out of place. He had a pick against the Cardinals in the December win, going into the offseason on a high note.

With all that, the part Canales really liked was the way he's talking to teammates on the field.

"It's watching him communicate," Canales said. "I think if you're asking for one specific thing, it's watching him talk. He's got to be connected with the corner, the nickel, the calls that are coming with motions and all those things, and I think that's probably the biggest growth that I see from Demani is his level of comfort in our system to be able to talk loudly.

"Sometimes the guys kind of sheepishly whisper something out there, but when you can hear them loud and they own it and they're demonstrative, you know that they really have grown, to the understanding of the concepts."

He's also earning the respect of teammates, as cornerback Jaycee Horn recognized his Texas A&M roots as a sign of belonging.

"Just the communication, playing above the Xs and Os, because it's, it's hard for a lot of young guys to do that," Horn began. "They just try to do exactly what the coach says so they don't get in trouble. But Demani, he came out of the SEC, so I expected him to be a high-level player, and he turned it into just that, communicating at a high level, making plays, and I think he's just going to get better and better."