CHARLOTTE — When Xavier Legette pulled in his touchdown pass from Bryce Young on Sunday against the Dolphins, it spurred a comeback win for the Panthers and took a weight off the receiver's back. After two weeks of limited production, followed by two weeks sidelined with injury, the score was a moment of jubilation and relief that opened the second-year receiver up to play looser the rest of the day.

"You hope those opportunities come up where the coverage points to a one-on-one chance for a guy to make a play," said offensive coordinator Brad Idzik on Thursday, recapping Legette's day against the Dolphins.

"I think the throw from Bryce, having to get that ball out, knowing at the time of the release of the throw, the leverage might not have been what he wanted, but he knew Xavier was going to make that play. And then Xavier, to go track that thing, a low ball, that was a really remarkable catch.

"You see on that rep, when you're playing fast and you're playing free, you know, wherever that ball is, you just let your talent kind of take over, and he did that, and it's a beautiful thing when you've got a couple of guys out there that can make some pretty spectacular plays. As long as you get them in that confident zone where they're playing fast and free, that stuff will continue to come to light."

But on a day when Rico Dowdle picked up 206 rushing yards, it was Legette's impact in the blocking game that really made a difference.

"I mean, off the bus, Xavier's a physical guy," joked Idzik. "So you look at the guy and you're like, 'All right, well, any DB would feel his physical presence.'"

To Idzik's point, at 6-3 and 227 pounds, Legette can win matchups on the line. That starts with setting the tone in the blocking game, as he did Sunday, helping in a team effort to give Dowdle space to work.

"He does it every day in practice," Idzik bragged of Legette's blocking. "He applies himself. (Wide receivers coach) Rob (Moore) is all about playing physical at that position, making sure they feel your presence in the run game, and then that will go ahead and couple and help you in the pass game.

"Because they've got to react—when we're playing with that balanced attack—they've got to react to you coming down on a crack block and then you taking it over the top on a play pass or running across the field on a keeper, and Xavier did a great job.

"We're going to continue to push into that as we create this balanced attack where we want to run and pass, everybody's involved in both phases."

Making headway on covering tight ends

Among the defensive adjustments the Panthers made last week, the job they did slowing down Dolphins tight end Darren Waller was particularly impressive.

That had been a problem in previous games as well, as the Panthers allowed tight ends to make a number of plays in the first four games.

Waller had five catches for 78 yards and a touchdown in the first half and finished the game with five catches for 78 yards and a touchdown. That second-half shutout, along with a run defense that held Miami to 19 yards on the ground and a season-high three-sack performance, were part of an overall improved effort.

"I think as the game went through, we were able to make some adjustments," defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero said Wednesday. "Not just myself, but as a staff, and just kind of seeing how they were going to attack us. When we prepared for Miami, so much of it obviously featured what (injured wide receiver) Tyreek Hill was going to do, and so there are some in-game adjustments that needed to be made.

"And part of it is, hey, give him credit as well. He's a heck of a player. He made some plays as well, but we were certainly able to make some adjustments on in-game, communicate better, execute a little bit better, and then at the same time, when you get the pass rush going as well, that helps."

Multiple punt returners give Tracy Smith choices

The Panthers have already used four different players to return punts this year, and there could be more on the way.

Special teams coordinator Tracy Smith said this is a unique setup, since the Panthers are blessed with many guys who are qualified.

"This has been the team I've been on that had the most guys who could catch an NFL punt for sure," Smith said. "So there's been more optionality in that way."

They began with rookie Trevor Etienne, subbed in veteran wideout David Moore for his ball-security before his injury in New England, and used DeeJay Dallas and Hunter Renfrow since then in spots. Dallas handled the primary return role last week, since Etienne was up for more offense with Chuba Hubbard injured.

"We're trying to use the guys week to week on who we think can be successful against that particular team and also what their other skill sets are," Smith said. "Both Trevor and DeeJay Dallas have played other positions on punt return so far for us before, so how do you use one guy and how does it affect the other 10 kind of thing.

"So it's kind of been a weekly decision until somebody really kind of grabs the title belt for a while, you know, you kind of keep moving and give everybody a chance to do whatever they can do best."

Smith said there can be some specialization, guys who have proven more trustworthy in short-field spaces, or better with room to run. And he continues to see guys staying after practice to work on catching punts, from practice squaders to players such as Jalen Coker, who just started practicing again on Monday. And the work is necessary, since punts fall out of the sky differently than passes, and there's the small matter of 11 people bearing down on you instead of one or two guys in coverage.

"A lot of it is just tracking the ball," Smith said. "The guys who know where it's going to land have a huge advantage because they're not moving when it gets there. What truly creates a challenging punt catch is if you are moving when the ball lands. So, like a center fielder, if you can get to where the ball is going to land and know right there, then it makes everything so much easier to deal with.

"So it's the same as like a deep ball catch. The guys that truly can track a ball and understand the physics of it, whether they do it explicitly or not, have a big advantage because those things come down really fast, and the spiral's tighter than a normal spin because of how hard it's spinning, the revolutions of it. So as long as you're perfect with your feet, it's much easier with your hands. And some guys are natural catchers."

In addition the physics, Smith cited a certain "imagination" required to put yourself in the right space to catch a punt. And with so many options available to him now and in the future, they might see others back there.