CHARLOTTE — "Story of the day, turnovers."

It took hardly any time at all for Dave Canales to touch on the biggest takeaway of Panthers practice on Wednesday. The defense came away with two interceptions in vastly different ways, both a punctation mark on the emphasis coaches have put on creating turnovers this offseason.

The first, a leaping pick by defensive tackle Shy Tuttle. Yes, you read that right.

Tuttle, at 6-3, 300 pounds even (give or take a pancake) saw Bryce Young moving on a scramble drill, and perfectly timed his jump into the quarterback's throwing lane. Fellow big man, offensive guard Robert Hunt, tried to tackle him, but Tuttle's momentum and exuberance drug them both into the makeshift end zone, where the entire defense was waiting to celebrate (it takes two big men a little bit longer to make the run).

"Out of 10, it's a 10," ranked linebacker Shaq Thompson of the play. "It's a big man catching a ball. It's anything, that's a 10."

As a former wide receivers coach, Canales was impressed with Tuttle's soft hands for the catch.

"Oh, beautiful," he declared. "There was no second catch. It was a clean catch and then he transitioned right away into a ball-carrier. Guys got in front of him and great play from Shy."

The second interception of the day came courtesy of a 50/50 ball to Adam Thielen, which nickel corner Troy Hill came away with.

Since arriving in January, Canales has preached "it's all about the ball." It's become a mantra of sorts, with defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero harping on creating more turnovers this offseason. It's an area that, despite having the fourth overall best total defense in 2023, and third best passing defense, the Panthers struggled. The group had a negative nine turnover differential, and a mere 11 total takeaways on defense (the latter of which was worst in the league).

"We lacked that last year," Thompson admitted. "That's a big emphasis this year. That's what E (defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero) is putting on us this year, is strip attempts, actual shots on the football.

"I think the top defenses that actually were up there in that category, they had about 66 attempts per game on the actual football. So, that's how you get all those turnovers. So we just got to get more attempts every game."

Simply saying, go get the ball, and actually doing it are two different things. But Thompson feels confident they're putting the emphasis where it needs to be this training camp.

"You got to practice at it, you got to do it every day," Thompson said. "It has to be repetitive, it has to be ingrained and that's what E's doing. We're doing it every day, working on practicing tackling, working at getting at the ball, raking."

The flip side of this conversation, of course, is the offense giving up two turnovers. The interceptions also capped a day in which the offense had been moving the ball well and effectively (more on that below). But for now, Dave Canales is ok with the interceptions from Young.

Why?

It means better risks are being taken, and windows are being tested. As a rookie, Young threw 10 interceptions, a middle-of-the-pack number among starters (15th in the league). He had a 1.9 percent interception rate. On paper, decent numbers to have as a rookie. But while it meant the risk wasn't as prevalent, neither was the reward.

"The interceptions happen when we're trying, so I have no problem with that," Canales explained. "If we're not throwing interceptions, we're not trying stuff.

"We're not trying to make those tight throws, and we know NFL football is tightly played, it's tight throws. And particularly with our defense, the way that those guys are just continuing to hone in, we've been playing against each other a lot, they're taking advantage of those ops.

"So, for me, I don't look too far into it other than just what happened on this play, so we can correct it and we can move forward."

Young and the Panthers defense will both separately be tested on Thursday, as the Jets arrive for a joint practice. Meaning Young will be facing one of the league's better defenses, while Evero's group is set to face-off against a future Hall of Famer in Aaron Rodgers.

Injury Updates

It was a bit of a revolving door with injuries on Wednesday, so let's just work our way straight down the list.

Shaq Thompson, tight end Tommy Tremble and receiver Xavier Legette all returned for the second day in a row. Quarterback Andy Dalton was also throwing during quarterback drills, and able to take part in one-on-one drills for the first time in more than a week.

Diontae Johnson didn't practice for the second straight day, and has a mild groin strain and will be day-to-day according to Canales. Guard Damien Lewis, who missed three practices with a personal matter, did not participate on Wednesday, despite being on the field, as part of load management upon his return.

Corner Dane Jackson left practice with a hamstring issue, and offensive lineman Nash Jensen also left with a sore Achilles but was fine when tested, Canales said.

Rookie linebacker Jackson Mitchell also left with a hamstring issue.

Outside linebacker Cam Gillwas also spotted at practice, albeit not as a participant. He was in his jersey, with a large club-like cast on his hand. Still, it's the first time he's been able to join his teammates, even on the sideline, since having surgery.

The offense's day

As mentioned, and promised, an offensive recap: prior to the two interceptions, the group did have a day worth writing home about. After handedly winning the one-one-one drills between defensive backs and wide receivers, the group went into the first team drill with a pep in the step.

Receiver Jonathan Mingo got things started on a deep comeback from Young that sent his sideline into a fervor. After running back Raheem Blackshear broke off a big run to cap the period, the offense flipped the field and continued their hot streak. Young put together back-to-back big plays, including one on which he found Terrace Marshall Jr. on a scramble drill that turned into an explosive play.

While Canales and his staff have been working to lower Young's throwing time, the quarterback's physicality and aptitude to make off schedule plays is something they're reminding him he's more than capable of, even at the NFL level. As such, those scramble plays, like the one to Marshall Jr., are ones that Canales wants to see more and more out of Young.

"We love emphasizing scrambles whether it comes up in seven-on-seven or any other drill right there," Canales said. "The thought that I have in my mind is always, there are great plays out there. There's explosives that can happen on the second part of the play.

"While I would like to see the ball come out in time in those situations, sometimes we get a win on a rush. Sometimes things happen and all of a sudden you got to go to the second play."

Less tension, less fighting

In case you haven't heard, and if you haven't, where have you been, the New York Jets will be in town Thursday for a joint practice. The teams elected to just hold one practice together, before Saturday's pre-season game, as the second day is where they feel most fights happen.

Even still, Canales knows tensions can rise between two teams in the August heat, even without a day's worth of lead-up. So his message to his team tonight is simple.

"Obviously the energy kind of heightens when you get to play against another opponent. And so with that, that's a great practice for what it feels like in a game where, win or lose, we have to have our head about us, celebrate with each other, pull each other together and then go to the next play," Canales preached.

"Let's be the one that takes advantage of another team losing it. Let's be the ones who stay composed and are still able to bring that energy with our own guys."

The head coach also said he will wait until after the practice to decide on whether or not starters will play during Saturday's game.

"As we come out of these practices, the health of the whole group kind of determines who we can play and who we can't."