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In grand style, another year’s in the books for Carolina Panthers Fan Fest.

Despite an unpromising forecast early on with light showers, the weather cooperated for fans and (and the media) tonight at Bank of America Stadium. Here are a few quick bites for you before we truck it back down 85 to Spartanburg:

1. Cam Newton’s intermediate zip is back.

Cam had a full run of reps tonight with the first team and looks comfortable and in top form on the most important throws: the tight window bullets between 7-12 yards downfield. Newton was effective on this front, and that’s a welcome sight following the surgery.

2. Tre Boston is ready to thump.

Boston was in full pads and ran well. Coach Ron Rivera sung the veteran’s praises following practice: “He had a couple really good reads,” Rivera remarked. “It’s great to see Tre getting into the mix.” Boston will be an intriguing piece to watch. Ross Cockrell got most of the reps at first team FS, and may still be poised to run with the starting role. It’s worth keeping tabs on, while Rashaan Gaulden continues to find himself working in more of a “buffalo” nickel role. Cole Luke also got a good bit of reps with the ones at nickel.

3. Speaking of Samuel: Hell on Wheels.

The third-year veteran kicked off practice with an early score, a beautiful deep ball between the hashes from Newton in stride, 30+ yards. The crowd lit up every time Samuel and Newton connected, including a makeshift dance party near the end of practice. Samuel is slowly emerging as the man to fill that invaluable “Ted Ginn take the top off the defense” role that helped the 2015 Panthers win 14 consecutive games.

4. David Tepper.

It’s been remarkable to watch the transformation here in Charlotte with the new man in charge. Tepper was accessible–walked up and chatted with me and a few reporters about getting that roof up. He was interacting with Luke Kuechly, sidelined tonight, during live action. He’s hands-on, but not in a Jerry Jones “back off dude” type of way. I like him. Impressive stuff.

More from Fan Fest later, including a torrent of great video and photos from Friday night’s affair. Follow us at twitter.com/onepantherplace for the latest all weekend.

It’s Part 2 of our chat with former #Panthers and #Eagles tight end Luther Broughton. He shares some pretty amazing stories from his time in Carolina, including some funny and insightful tidbits on George Seifert–a man who loves a nice hot pancake. We also get Luther’s thoughts on the state of football today, concussions, and how his body and mind feel today after absorbing the rigors of pro football. It’s a bite-size edition of OnePantherPodcast. Share. Subscribe. Enjoy!

 

 

• Third year WR Curtis Samuel looks the part. There has always been tremendous potential in the Ohio State product’s game, potential that seems to be transitioning into a reality for 2019. Samuel has been near perfect this weekend. Much sharper route running is my first observation. Cleaner off the line, not finding himself off track from any DB press/jams on the line. If he’s dropped a pass, I haven’t seen it. What I have seen is a pair dominant routes with elite separation, both of which went for touchdowns. His RAC game is borderline-elite and he remains a threat as a quasi-back on jet sweeps and reverse/end around plays. This newfound downfield utilization (as displayed in Week 17 at New Orleans last season) is great to see.

• Rookie EDGE rusher Brian Burns has wowed campers (and even a few verbal teammates) with his quickness around the corner on the pass rush. Now, look, I get it. It’s day three of a rookie’s first camp. There’s always a tendency to overreact and/or overhype. Many, in a corresponding move, are in a panic over rookie LT Greg Little having some early issues controlling Burns. Let’s say this: Burns is beating Little fairly regularly. He should. I’d be concerned if my first round speed rusher was getting his ass handed to him by an inexperienced player at a tricky position to learn. Burns is fast. He has a bend to his rush–reminds me (relax) a bit of former Colts DE Dwight Freeney. The ability to get low, skinny and turnstile a tackle is aesthetically impressive. My rule for both men: give it a week. Let’s see how Burns looks on day 6, 7, 8 of practice. Likewise for Little, as he has a ton to learn in one of the leading “misdirection/moving parts” offensive schemes in the league.

• Cam Newton, and “that arm”. Well, he got a good day off on Saturday, tossing light throws alone for half the session on an empty field. Opening night, my observation of the arm was, like many, generally positive. On a post corner to TE Chris Manherz, and on a deep post to Samuel, the ball traveled with premium spin and accuracy, and this observer believes there’s more height on these throws than in the past. It’s early, so who knows. It’s just an observation. What I want to see is how the right wing looks in tight windows. Scenario: 3rd and goal, 7YL. Newton typically whistles a fastball into that tight window, just past the ear of a zone LB. Quick slants, typically. I want to see velocity + accuracy in this situation, or similar ones. The deep ball is vital, and it’s an attention grabber considering the struggles he had in camp last year delivering anything over 30 yards with accuracy. The intermediate zip needs to be there. Haven’t seen him display it much yet, likely by design.

• Gerald McCoy: Man of the People. I always work hard to pay close attention to chemistry and behavioral elements with first-year players in a system. Are they involved? Communicative? Are they detached? Aloof? Sometimes, there’s nothing to observe. In the case of McCoy, I spent some quality time just a few feet from the perennial All-Pro DT following his first practice on Thursday night. Here’s what he did: carried a few helmets a good 50+ yards in my direction. I’m thinking, “the hell is this…veteran pro-bowler hazing?” Nope, voluntary. He wanted to do it. Why? Who cares? It’s a tremendous show of class. McCoy then proceeds to move some of the training equipment 20 yards onto the field of play, and goes to on do about 20 minutes of individual pass rush drills–alone–deep into the night. Newton is circling the field with his entourage rifling off his John Hancock, and there’s McCoy, grinding away like an undrafted rookie. How has he looked on the field? Too hard to tell, as he’s spending most of his reps in a new role: 5-technique DE in a 34 defense. But he’s oozing with intangibles, leading by example while working closely with his young mates on the line. It feels right. Probably because it is right.

Much like the mental pictures forged from those playful summer days on an old childhood street, memories of the once bustling Thieves Avenue grow more distant with each passing season.

The 2015 Carolina Panthers secondary was a uniquely adroit unit—a premium blend of supervisory savvy and youthful vitality.

The perimeter was patrolled by one such tandem: 34-year old craftsman Charles Tillman locking down the left side, with the exuberant Josh Norman shining in his first full season at right cornerback. The dynamic duo contributed a combined 6 interceptions, 5 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries.

Free safety Kurt Coleman was the NFC’s most productive player at his position, despite being omitted from both Pro Bowl and All-Pro consideration. (Production metrics below, ranked among all NFL safeties)

FS – Kurt Coleman (2015)
Interceptions	7	2nd
Interception yards	89	6th
Tackles	88	t-10th
Tackles for loss	5	t-7th
Passes Defended	9	t-8th
INT returns for TD	1	t-2nd

 

The secondary as a whole:

• 15 interceptions
• 8 forced fumbles
• 7 fumble recoveries
• 2% touchdown rate (1^st in NFL)
• 4 yards allowed/attempt (2^nd in NFL)

The lack of secondary playmaking since 2015’s historic run has been staggering. Certainly, allowing Norman to seek employment elsewhere prior to the 2016 NFL Draft played a part. Former general manager Dave Gettleman was notorious for these unexpected little surprises, this time pulling the franchise tag on Norman at nearly the last minute, setting off a sense of justifiable panic among Panthers fans.

Gettleman has the occasional knack for ham-fisted dramatics, still exhibiting such practices today as the general manager of the New York Giants.

The 2016 solution? Draft a pair of corners, work them like dogs in OTA’s and camp, toss them into the lineup and hope for the best.

James Bradberry, the second-round selection from Samford, started week one, and played up to an acceptable level in his 13 starts. He led the team with 10 passes defended and snagged a pair of interceptions.

Daryl Worley, the third-round pick from West Virginia, started 11 games with an interception, but had trouble in coverage seemingly every game.

After Carolina allowed Atlanta to play pitch and catch for an idiotic 576 yards in week four, second-year cornerback Bene Benwikere was promptly fired for his role in “the Julio Jones 300 yards worth of catches” fiasco.

The season was lost, in large part due to a lost secondary. Tillman’s famous “Peanut Punch” worked wonders for his entire band of defensive back brothers in 2015. The secondary forced 8 fumbles on their road to Super Bowl 50.

A season later, with Tillman departed, Carolina’s DB’s managed one single strip, and zero recoveries.

Staggering.

Though 2017 ended with an 11-5 wildcard berth, generally considered a solid run, the secondary made a scant amount of impact plays. While maintaining a relatively healthy TD/ATT rate (4.5%), the defensive backfield combined for the same number of interceptions Coleman single-handedly collected in 2015: seven—that’s less that one every two weeks.

Last season was an enigmatic experience as an observer. The early emergence of rookie Donte Jackson—4 interceptions, 7 passes defended, a forced fumble and a sack sparked Carolina to a 6-2 start and put Jackson in the discussion for DROY honors.

Fittingly, Jackson wouldn’t intercept another regulation pass over Carolina’s 1-7 finish, though he did run back a “pick-two” of an ill-conceived Drew Brees two-point attempt, streaking an impressive full hundred yards on the play in week 15.

That game—against the Saints on Monday Night Football—revealed just how much potential this DB group possesses when properly coached/coordinated.

It was a dominant defensive performance against one of the league’s most explosive teams. For just the 22^nd time in Drew Brees’ 279 career games, he threw an interception and was held without a touchdown.

Bradberry did fine work on the NFC’s leading receiver Michael Thomas, limiting him to 47 yards for the game, with the longest play 12 yards.

In fact, with head coach Ron Rivera calling the defense in both Saints matchups in 2018, Thomas had his two worst performances of the season relative to his season averages: 6.5 ypc (-3.06), 4.8 yd/target (-4.76), 75% catch rate (-10%) and no touchdowns.

 

Hard times on Thieves Ave.
	Int	FF	FR	TD%	YPA
2015	15	8	7	3.2%	5.4
2016	11	1	0	4.4%	6.5
2017	7	3	3	4.5%	6.1
2018	11	2	2	6.1%	6.8

 

So, the question looms: Can the 2019 Panthers secondary get return to their 2015-like criminal form? Perry Fewell certainly hopes to help.

A veteran defensive back specialist with 21 years of NFL coaching experience, Fewell joins Carolina as their new secondary coach. Former secondary coach Richard Rodgers will continue to assist with the new title of safeties coach.

It appears the Panthers will ride with Rashaan Gaulden at free safety. Gaulden, a third-round pick in 2018, saw limited action last season behind now-departed starter Mike Adams. Eric Reid will enter his first full season with Carolina with full command of the strong safety position.

Jackson and Bradberry are the logical fits on the outside at corner. That leaves the door open at nickelback with the departure of veteran Captain Munnerlyn.

Ross Cockrell, who suffered a brutal season-ending leg injury at camp last year, feels like the best fit in the slot. Cockrell, who last played with the Giants in 2017, had extensive slot corner experience from his days in Pittsburgh—in a 3-4 defense, no less.

Corn Elder and Kevon Seymour are in the mix for nickel, with safety Colin Jones as an occasional contributor in what’s been coined the team’s “Buffalo” package—a big nickel concept in which a safety with speed moves down into the slot.

In any event, there’s little question that the 2019 Carolina Panthers secondary must improve in their ability to take the football away, creating valuable field position advantages for the offense. Limiting big plays, particularly on 3^rd and 7+, is just as critical—this was a devastatingly bad area for Carolina’s secondary in 2018.