CHARLOTTE — There are things Robert Hunt is anxious about, like finishing his Christmas shopping on the afternoon of Christmas Eve when he gets off work.

He's less worried about putting a timeline on his injured elbow, after taking part in individual drills on Wednesday for his first practice since tearing a biceps tendon in Week 2.

Hunt laughed and said of his upcoming trip to the mall, " It's not really shopping, I'm just touching up, you know what I mean? That's all, just a little brush up, make sure I got everything I need. That's it."

That's similar to what he's doing on the field as he begins what will still be a process to return to play.

By starting the clock Wednesday, they could conceivably activate him from injured reserve at any time. But he shook off the idea that it would be very soon, since he still had to get into football shape after 14 weeks of rest and rehab, and Wednesday was about easing back in.

"I would love to play," he said. "We'll see. In the near future, . . . that's not, yeah, we'll see what tomorrow holds."

Getting Hunt back would obviously be a plus for the Panthers, whether it's this week, next week, or a potential postseason return.

After signing him to a $100 million contract as a free agent from Miami last spring, he immediately earned Pro Bowl honors, and helped stabilize an offensive line that allowed 65 sacks the year before (they cut that to 36 in 2024).

His injury in Week 2 triggered a series of adjustments, and the Panthers have used 11 different combinations of linemen in 15 games.

"We're really excited," Panthers head coach Dave Canales said earlier this week. "He's making progress. That's a real possibility for this week, to see if we can get him out there in a capacity to do some individual drills, to start leaning on people. He's worked his way into that area."

Hunt didn't get into too many specifics on Wednesday — after all it was his first day, and he still has shopping to do — but said the fact it was possible to come back was a positive.

"In the standpoint of like anxiety, I'm fine; I think it's like riding a bike," he said. "Once you get out there and you play, you play. I'm not really worried about that part of it, I don't think.

"I just got to get in shape, you know what I mean? Doing football is its own thing, right? So you can do as much as you want, but then you get on the side, you get into doing football things, it's a little different than what you've been doing. So, some more reps of that, and then, we'll see how it goes from there."

He admitted that when he suffered the initial injury in Arizona back in September, he thought his season was over.

"I didn't think it wasn't possible," he admitted. "I just kind of I told myself from the get-go, like that's who I am. I ain't going to, I guess, soak in the pain or whatever it is. It is what it is.

"This next step, I attack it how I attack everything else, and whatever comes from it comes from it, and you know hopefully I'll get a chance to play in some meaningful games."

Hunt sounded a cautious tone, saying it was like fixing a car, and driving it to the Harris Teeter as opposed to putting it on the highway to Raleigh, but he's also excited to get back.

"We don't know. We'll see how it goes," he said when asked if a potential playoff game was a more realistic expectation. "This is literally my first day after. I know my body. I know my body does react, and it goes quick, so I can be ready if I do it the right way, I probably could be ready by whenever.

"I'm not going to say a date, but I can be ready soon if I take care of my body, do it the right way. I know my body just needs a tune up, man."

After watching a few games at home on the television with his 1-year-old son, he's been back on the sidelines recently, and bringing the same kind of energy he brought to the field last year.

"I think seeing the guys playing well, doing good, just seeing that and feeling the crowd out there just kind of energized me in general," he said. "Because I go out there and I'm like, damn, this feels good, it sounds good, it looks good. I want to play, so that just that, that keeps me motivated.

"I was just taking it one day at a time, you know, and if, if it came about, it came about, and you know, we'll see how the future goes."

Hunt was asked if the potential of a playoff trip enticed him even more, saying he discussed with some teammates whether he'd be trying this if the team was eliminated already.

"I mean, I love football," Hunt said. "I like to play football, and I ain't played football in a minute, so I think I would have thought about playing no matter what. Because I love the game of football and I want to play and I like the feeling of what it does, but it'll probably be a little different conversation than what it is now. . . .

"It's been fun, man. This fan base and everybody in this building is looking for something great and looking to build something great, and I think that this year is just another step of what we're trying to hit and take the program. So it's been fun to watch and tell myself that I'm a part of it even if I'm not physically playing, I think I do a lot of different things in this building to help uplift different people and bring who I am to the building still. So I feel like I'm a part of still in that certain way, but excited to try to win some games and be a part of the actual physicality and stuff like that."