CHARLOTTE — Chuba Hubbard could only laugh when asked about the knot in the middle of his forehead following Monday's most physical practice of camp.

"Pretty boy ain't pretty no more," he laughed afterward, when asked about the lump he referred to as "an eggnog."

He was in a better mood then, but a late exchange with linebacker Trevin Wallace was one of the more heated moments of a heated day, when the Panthers put pads on for the first time.

Wallace gave Hubbard a hard shot at the end of a play, and Hubbard clearly objected because he got up and took a swing at the second-year linebacker. But by the time he had finished his post-practice routine, he was past it.

"Just a football play; he's playing hard, that's what coach preaches, so nothing to be mad about it's just football," Hubbard said. "Obviously, a lot of emotions in it, but he's playing hard and that's what we need, so I love it. I mean, football is all about emotions, obviously I got hit, reacted a certain way, but like I said, he's playing hard and I can't be mad about that.

"At the end of the day, he's playing physical, playing fast. I don't think anybody's really thinking about how you're going to hit somebody; he's just trying to make a play. I don't fault anybody for playing hard. That's what I love. I'm not going to lie, I react crazy sometimes. I love football. I'm emotional, so that's how it is. I'll go in there in the locker room, know it's all love. He knows that, though."

It's the kind of thing you see on a first day in pads, and actually triggered a secondary scrum away from the play. But there were no hard feelings afterward — Hubbard said — but it was also the kind of intense practice head coach Dave Canales was hoping to see.

"Playing football," Canales said of the play in question. "We've got to toe the line, we've got to play physical, and a lot of times, it's not personal, it's just football. So guys will respond passionately, and they don't like getting knocked on their butt, they take it personally. But you know there was a lot of physical play throughout practice, so that's going to happen."

Obviously, he doesn't want one of his team's leaders (in word and deed) hurt in any kind of scrap with teammates, but Canales didn't seem to mind the scene, shaking his head when asked if he considered calling practice short after the late-workout scuffle.

"Not at all," he replied. "As quick as I could get the music back going and feed off of that energy, I wanted to make sure the guys can have the ability to have plays, and sometimes it's going to be emotional, passionate plays. Can we go to the next one? Can we get back to football?So it was great."

The simple fact that the Panthers want to be a running team, and they're finally able to really run, made it a competitive day and one that's consistent with their personality.

Heated in more ways than one

The feels-like temperatures again pushed close to 100 by the end of practice, but there was enough breeze blowing to keep it from being unbearable.

The pads being on added a few degrees, though.

There were a couple of good push-and-shoves at the end of plays, including in one-on-ones between linemen when Damien Lewis and Tershawn Wharton extended a play into some extracurriculars.

Wharton doesn't have the kind of physical mass as Lewis and Robert Hunt (he's at least 50 pounds lighter), but he's lower-body dense and has the kind of never-stop attitude that an undrafted rookie from Missouri S&T has to have to survive and thrive in the NFL.

Coupled with Bobby Brown III returning to practice Monday morning and Derrick Brown making his way back, Canales knows he's going to have some competition in the interior lines, as well as outside with tackles Ikem Ekwonu and Taylor Moton squaring up with vets Patrick Jones II and D.J. Wonnum and rookies Nic Scourton and Princely Umanmielen.

"The battles up front with Rob and D-Lew and Turk, Bobby's going to be coming out there pretty soon," Canales began. "Ickey and T-Mo, going against DJ and Pat Jones, Princeley and Nic Scourton having to go against veteran tackles. All these matchups are going to make us who we are."

TMac showing off his speed and what he's learned

The Panthers have known Tetairoa McMillan played fast. That much was evident during his time at Arizona, and when he ran a 4.48 40-yard dash during the pre-draft process. But being fast is different than having the right stride, and in the NFL, everything is about timing.

"A lot of times those guys, their stride builds up as they get going, you know, it's particularly when he's running across the field that he can pretty much separate and run away from anybody," Canales explained Monday.

It was in Monday's practice, even with the extra weight on McMillan's lithe frame, Canales saw the timing on the stride really click. During a 7-on-7 period, Bryce Young hit on a crosser that TMac pulled in on the run.

"I know we're doing our job and I know that Bryce is throwing the ball with accuracy when we can get him catching the ball in full stride," Canales bragged. "Which was a beautiful play by Bryce, a little bit of pressure. He kind of had to move off the spot, get the ball out quickly and so just a really well executed play."

TMac also flashed that speed and stride in one-on-one's Monday, getting past Mike Jackson with his speed and body frame, finding space down the sideline to get the win. on a deep ball.

One-liners galore on a hot day

The physical day of work clearly didn't diminish their ability to make jokes, as there were a number of great lines in the press conferences that followed.

Bryce Young has a low-key sense of humor many days, but his timing was perfect when he was asked about Clemson coach Dabo Swinney saying that Hunter changes into an alter ego when he takes the field, saying: "I know he doesn't look the part, but he puts a helmet on and he turns into Superman."

"I don't think I'm at liberty to say what a normal person looks like," Young deadpanned.

He truly is funny and is becoming more and more willing to show it.

Renfrow had his own jokes when asked about Swinney teasing him about his golf game, noting he was out of the NFL last season while battling ulcerative colitis.

"I got a lot of practice last year," Renfrow replied when asked about his 7 handicap.

But it went all the way to the top, as Canales was asked about a late sequence in which tight end Ja'Tavion went down, Canales said it was a product of aggressive defense trying to create turnovers.

"It looked like he took a shot in the groin right there," he said. "We're asking our guys to punch the ball; sometimes they take it a little too literally, so he went down in a heap, but I think he'll be all right."