On Wednesday, Carolina Panthers interim head coach Steve Wilks all but put a cap on Pat Elflein’s 2022—telling reporters his usual starting center is likely done for the rest of the year. Elflein, who was placed on injured reserve last Saturday, is now likely to undergo season-ending hip surgery.
And now that the usual starting center is no longer the starting center, it’ll be Bradley Bozeman handling this offense’s snaps for the foreseeable future.
Bozeman made his first start last Sunday, an outing met with considerable success in a rout of a stout Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense. Pro Football Focus gave the 27-year-old lineman an overall grade of 93.2—the highest single-game grade for any center this season.
Before that sparkling debut, Bozeman was a key cog for the Baltimore Ravens, helping form one of the most consistent and ferocious running games in the league. Whether he was MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson’s primary ball snapper in 2020 or a reliable left guard the three years prior, the University of Alabama product successfully found his place at the pro level.
A notable offseason addition for general manager Scott Fitterer, Bozeman signed with Carolina on a one-year, $2.8 million pact. That, in fact, was a relatively modest amount given his performance in Baltimore.
But, he knew he would get his opportunity to prove his worth with a rebuilding Panthers front. And one game in, he’s done exactly that.
Should he continue the stellar play we saw last week, when he contributed to a dominant run game that averaged over 7.0 yards per carry, he should become a priority for the team this offseason. So will that bet on himself continue to pay off?
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