16 former Panthers, and a current assistant coach, were named amongst the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 167 preliminary nominees for the 2025 class.
Which Carolina Panthers great could be joining Julius Peppers in Canton, Ohio? Well, 16 of them will at least have a shot.
On Wednesday, the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced 167 preliminary nominees for their 2025 class. Among those listed were 16 former Panthers.
Those players are as follows:
QB Jake Delhomme
RB Stephen Davis
RB/WR Eric Metcalf
WR Muhsin Muhammad
WR Steve Smith Sr.
TE Wesley Walls
TE Jeremy Shockey
OT Jordan Gross
C Ryan Kalil
DE Jared Allen
LB Jessie Armstead
LB Luke Kuechly
LB Lee Woodall
S Eugene Robinson
CB Charles Tillman
K John Kasay
Headlining the group is Kuechly, who is now in his first year of eligibility for the honor. The 2013 NFL Defensive Player of the Year and seven-time All-Pro spoke about the possibility of being a first-ballot Hall of Famer back in February.
“I think when you think about the Hall of Fame, it’s obviously awesome,” Kuechly said on an episode of Up & Adams. “It’s the highest honor that you can have as a football player on an individual basis. And you look at the guys that got in there at the linebacker position, the guys I grew up watching—Derrick Brooks, Brian Urlacher, Ray Lewis, obviously Pep got in. Those three guys that I mentioned and then Patrick [Willis]. And all of ’em were a little bit different.”
Former cornerback DeAngelo Hall, who is currently the assistant defensive backs coach for Carolina, was also one of the 167 nominees.
Some familiar faces were in attendance for the Panthers’ Back Together Saturday event.
The “Back Together” in Back Together Saturday meant a little bit more for the Carolina Panthers this summer.
In addition to the 90 or so active players the organization currently employs, 39 franchise legends were in attendance for this morning’s training camp practice at Bank of America Stadium. Per Vashti Hurt of Carolina Blitz, the 39 attendees are the most in the team’s history of the event.
Those former Panthers are as follows:
Mario Addison
Steve Beuerlein
Tre Boston
Corey “Philly” Brown
Brentson Buckner
Matt Campbell
Vinny Ciurciu
Stephen Davis
Thomas Davis
Jake Delhomme
Kevin Donnalley
Dwan Edwards
Nick Goings
Deveron Harper
Roman Harper
Richard Huntley
Charles Johnson
Luke Kuechly
Kris Mangum
Brett Maxie
Justin Medlock
Dan Morgan
Muhsin Muhammad
Captain Munnerlyn
Cleveland Pinkney
Ryne Robinson
Mike Rucker
Don Sasa
Kawann Short
Jonathan Stewart
Dwight Stone
Quinton Teal
Charles Tillman
Mike Tolbert
Al Wallace
Wesley Walls
Will Witherspoon
Donnell Woolford
Before getting back at Back Together Saturday, the legends met up with each other at the stadium on Friday. Addison, who played for the Panthers from 2012 to 2019, spoke about the importance of the reunion.
“We need this. We need to do this more,” Addison said, via Kassidy Hill of Panthers. “People tend to leave the league and do their own things. Life happens. You have a family, have kids, and tend to never look back. But being able to come back and see all these guys in this environment—it’s like a (family) reunion. A football reunion…we need to share the stories for the younger generation can hear how we did it and how we paved the way.”
Check out this must-see moment between Panthers greats Cam Newton and Luke Kuechly from Thursday:
Go grab your tissue box, Carolina Panthers.
Now that he’s a full-fledged YouTuber, franchise great Cam Newton has been setting up shop at radio row this week from the site of Super Bowl LVIII. And during his second outing on the job, he got a heartwarming surprise from an old friend . . .
Former linebacker Luke Kuechly—one of Newton’s “favorite teammates of all-time,” per Newton—joined his pal on the set for a few minutes. Cam wasn’t stingy with more superlatives either—also presenting to some and introducing Luke to others as the “epitome of an ultimate teammate,” “a professional,” and, of course, “Captain America.”
Newton would then ask Kuechly how, during his illustrious eight-year NFL career, he could turn the switch from Clark Kent to Superman.
“You wanna compete, man. You wanna win,” Kuechly replied. “You work so hard and you wanna win. And I think that’s really what it comes down to is the competitive side of guys is ultimately what makes ’em a good football player.
“And you know how it was in Carolina—we had the best dudes. Whether it was Thomas [Davis] or G.O. [Greg Olsen] or [Ryan] Kalil or you or Chuck [Charles Johnson] or K.K. [Kawann Short] and Star [Lotulelei], and I’m missin’ guys, Roman [Harper] and Peanut [Charles Tillman] and Josh [Norman]—everybody on our team was so doggone competitive. Stew [Jonathan Stewart], [Mike] Tolbert, Fozzy [Whittaker]. And it was just kinda an understanding of like, this is how we do things in Carolina and if you don’t wanna be a part of it, then go on and get out.”
The way they did things resulted in the most sustained success in franchise history. With Newton and Kuechly leading the way, the Panthers captured three consecutive NFC South titles and an NFC championship between 2013 and 2015.
So, hopefully this new era in Carolina starts stacking up some competitors, or dawgs, of their own.
The Bears created a dish that belongs in a Michelin Star restaurant with their 2023 schedule reveal.
The Chicago Bears 2023 schedule has finally been released and with it, a fun video to go along with the reveal. Over the last few years, NFL teams have embraced the schedule reveals with engaging videos on social media. The Bears have been no different, but their videos haven’t exactly been up to par with other NFL teams. That wasn’t the case this year, though.
The Bears parodied the hit FX television show “The Bear” which is based in Chicago to unveil their schedule. With the help of current and former players, as well as celebrities to star in the video, the Bears created a dish that belongs in a Michelin Star restaurant.
After being nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, Jaylon Johnson is building a relationship with Charles Tillman.
For years, the number 33 Chicago Bears jersey was donned by one of the best cornerbacks to ever play at Soldier Field, Charles Tillman. Nowadays, that number is worn by another young up-and-coming cornerback in Jaylon Johnson, who hopes to follow in the footsteps of Tillman both on and off the field.
“I just met [Tillman] for the first time during the Walter Payton interviews,” Johnson said. “Being able to talk to him, up close and personal, talk about personal things, talk about football. Just us two, not seeing him in a team setting or him giving the team a speech, but actually being able to shake his hand, talk to him, look him in the eye. I just got his number so that relationship will end up growing.”
If there’s one cornerback to learn from, it’s Tillman. From 2003-2014, Tillman was a physical defender who crafted a skill of stripping the football away from ball carriers that no one has been able to replicate with the “Peanut Punch.” Tillman has 44 career forced fumbles and hold NFL records for most forced fumbles in a season (12) and in a game (4).
He was a leader for years on some of the greatest Bears defenses of all time and now hopefully he shares his secrets with Johnson. The third-year pro has one forced fumble and one interception as he gets ready to play the final four games of the 2022 season.
The Walter Payton Man of the Year Award will be announced during the NFL Honors prior to the Super Bowl in February.
Take a look at Charles Tillman’s message to Bears rookies: “Differences are what make champions, not similarities.”
Former Bears cornerback Charles “Peanut” Tillman recently met with Chicago’s rookies ahead of rookie minicamp to officially welcome them to the NFL.
Bears head coach Matt Eberflus reached out to a number of alumni, Tillman included, to bridge the gap between the past and present. Eberflus recently praised Tillman’s inspiring message to the new rookies.
“To bring those guys back and to relay that message, that foundational core that those guys put together for this franchise is second to none,” Eberflus said. “Those guys, our new players, young players have to recognize that.
“The message Tillman had was outstanding the other day. Just about being a pro, being a Chicago Bear, and what that means to him and what it means to the fans and what it means to the city. To me, you can’t have enough of that.”
Now, the Bears have released part of Tillman’s speech to the rookies, where he addressed making the transition from college to the NFL, which is an entirely different beast, putting in the work to garner respect from veteran teammates and what they need to do to be embraced by the city of Chicago.
“I’ll share this quote with you,” Tillman said. “‘Differences are what make champions, not similarities.’ Whatever you can do to help this team win, you need to have that mindset right now. If you want to attain and be part of something special, which is what is in this room, you gotta think differently, and that starts right now.”
Matt Eberflus made it clear he wants Bears alumni to be involved with the team, and that starts with Charles Tillman at rookie minicamp.
The Chicago Bears hosted a special guest to kick off rookie minicamp on Friday. Former Bears cornerback Charles Tillman — known for his signature “Peanut Punch” — met with Chicago’s new crop of rookies.
Unlike the previous regime, head coach Matt Eberflus wants Bears alumni to be involved with the current team. He recently revealed on an episode of Peter King’s podcast that he’d reached out to around 30 to 35 Bears alumns. Tillman was someone he mentioned specifically.
According to Eberflus, Tillman’s message to the rookies was about the significance of being a member of the Bears and what it means to everyone.
“To bring those guys back and to relay that message, that foundational core that those guys put together for this franchise is second to none,” Eberflus said. “Those guys, our new players, young players have to recognize that.
“The message Tillman had was outstanding the other day. Just about being a pro, being a Chicago Bear, and what that means to him and what it means to the fans and what it means to the city. To me, you can’t have enough of that.”
If Eberflus has anything to say about it, there will be other former players addressing the team.
“I told Charles, pass the word around,” he said. “Talk to the guys. As you know, I texted a bunch of guys when I got the job. I’ve talked to several of them. They’re all welcome to come in. We would love to see them. And we’re excited about having guys like that around in the future.”
Finding impactful players in the NFL draft isn’t always easy. But the Bears have had their share of success in the last 10 years.
The 2022 NFL draft is less than two weeks away and the Chicago Bears and general manager Ryan Poles will set out to add impactful players to the roster.
This will be Poles’ first go around with the draft as a GM and he’s tasked with finding the next class of great Bears players. Of course, it will take years to determine how well those selections will pan out.
Finding impactful players in the NFL draft isn’t always easy and finding and developing stars can be challenging. However, the Bears have had their share of success since the turn of the century. Here are our top 10 Bears draft picks since 2000.
As it turns out, Marc Trestman and Brandon Marshall have a tremendous amount of respect for one another after two years together with Bears.
There were many surprising developments that took place off the football field for the Chicago Bears, but the biggest one might be that former head coach Marc Trestman hosts a leadership podcast – and he had Brandon Marshall on as his latest guest.
Trestman is now an adjunct professor and hosts The Leadership Gameplan, a podcast from the University of Miami School of Law that discusses leadership strategies with various guests. In the most recent episode, Marshall joined Trestman to discuss his own leadership endeavors, both on the field and off.
As it turns out, Trestman and Marshall have a tremendous amount of respect for one another after spending two years together in Chicago. Their tenure was marred by blowout losses, fighting within the locker room, and controversies that have many fans believing it was the worst era in team history.
Now years later, they sat down to talk leadership but also peeled back the curtain during their days in Chicago to explain why some things worked and others didn’t. When it came to Trestman’s leadership style, Marshall actually said he was ahead of his time and that’s why it didn’t work out.
“You were ahead of your time and if there’s one thing you could potentially have done differently is understand that. But I don’t know if you could have,” Marshall told his former coach. “The old way of doing thing in sports was ‘hey, I’ve got these four leaders, you guys are going to do everything…you guys run the show.’ And you came in and you brought in what everyone is adopting now.”
Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports
When Trestman was hired back in 2013, he put a major emphasis on leadership and what he brought to the table as head coach. He preferred to lead from the back of the meeting rooms, invited countless guest speakers for motivation, encouraged players to speak their minds, and never cursed them out. For some locker rooms, especially in 2021, that might have been the right approach. But not back then as Marshall explained further.
The receiver went on to say because of how the locker room was constructed following the firing of Lovie Smith, Trestman’s message fell on deaf ears.
“I think that was a tough thing for us in Chicago was that locker room was so tight,” Marshall said. “You had Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, [Charles] Peanut Tillman, these guys that were used to one way of thinking, one way of approaching it. And when something new was introduced, it was like a shock to their system and that was the toughest thing.
“You probably spent maybe that entire first year just getting guys to buy in and believe because football is football….the way you set up our philosophy was ‘okay, we know there’s going to be problems but I’m going to give you guys the solutions’ and some of you guys can do that, but structurally, because it was so counterculture to what those guys were used to, it took us a year to kind of just get guys to buy in. We’re talking about big personalities.”
Heading into Trestman’s first season, the team had just said goodbye to Urlacher but still had Briggs and Tillman, who had played under a respected and defensive coach in Smith for nine years. Now they were under an offensive-minded coach who was a stark contrast from Smith.
While Trestman’s arrival saw an offensive explosion as they averaged 381 yards per game in 2013, the defense suffered greatly. Once the calling card of Bears football, the defense fell to historic lows as the Bears trudged through an 8-8 season in year one before bottoming out at 5-11 in year two.
Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Though Marshall enjoyed success in Trestman’s offense, posting over 2,000 receiving yards and 20 touchdowns in 29 games, the two seemed to butt heads quite a bit, with Marshall having outbursts in the locker room, the sideline, and in practice over certain issues. But the two were able to laugh it off, with Marshall apologizing to Trestman.
“I used to get so upset with you, this is when I was young Brandon. But I get it now, though so first off, I apologize for all the stress I caused,” Marshall said.
“I had a full head of hair when I got to Chicago,” Trestman quipped.
Both Marshall and Trestman moved on from the Bears after 2014, with Trestman bouncing around the NFL as a coordinator, then moving back to the CFL, and finishing his football career as a head coach of the XFL’s Tampa Bay Vipers.
Marshall, meanwhile, was traded to the New York Jets where he spent two seasons, then joined the New York Giants and Seattle Seahawks before retiring after the 2018 season. He amassed over 12,000 receiving yards and 80+ touchdowns throughout his 13-year career. Now, he is the founder and owner of House of Athlete, a lifestyle and wellness brand for athletes.
The Trestman and Marshall era is well in the rearview mirror, but it’s still one of the most controversial periods in Bears history. Hearing Trestman and Marshall talk about leadership was surprising, but are they correct in thinking the philosophy was just too early for that time? Or was Trestman always doomed to fail, no matter what era he coached in?
Back on Oct. 5, 2008, the Bears defeated the Lions 34-7 during Detroit’s 0-16 season.
Every Thursday throughout the 2021 regular season, Bears Wire will take a look back at some of the most memorable moments in Chicago Bears history that occurred on or near that given day.
October 5, 2008: Bears defeat Detroit Lions 34-7 during their 0-16 season
The Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions have had their share of notable games over the years, being division rivals and all. But this game during the 2008 season stands out for a couple of reasons.
First, prior to this year, this marked the last season the Lions faced the Bears without quarterback Matthew Stafford on the roster. Two, quarterback Dan Orlovsky played a significant role in this game, who was also in the news this week after blasting the 2021 Bears and head coach Matt Nagy. With it being Lions week, this felt like the perfect game to look back on.
Taking place in Detroit, the Bears and Lions got off to a slow start. Despite the Bears opening their first drive with a field goal to take a 3-0 lead, both teams stalled out quite a bit in the first quarter. The Lions in particular had trouble moving the ball as the Bears defense had quarterback Jon Kitna under siege all first half. He was unable to get comfortable in the pocket, leading to many inaccurate passes.
On the other side, Bears quarterback Kyle Orton had a career day. He went 24-for-34 for 334 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. His first score was a quick strike to running back Matt Forte in the second quarter and in their ensuing possession, Orton found wide receiver Devin Hester for another score to make it a 17-0 ballgame at halftime.
Into the third quarter, Orton led the Bears on yet another scoring drive, this time capped by a touchdown run by Forte to make it 24-0. Things only got worse for Detroit on the next series as Kitna was replaced by Orlovsky due to injury and he had an even tougher time against the defense. Orlovsky was picked off by cornerback Charles Tillman for a pick six to make it a 31-0 game. The Bears defense forced an interception and a fumble on the day and had 4 sacks as well.
The Bears bullied the Lions all day, winning 34-7 and keeping Detroit’s skid going at 0-4 en route to their winless 0-16 season.
