Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Some familiar faces will be on the biggest stage in sports on Sunday.
Did you know that Super Bowl LVIII will include this year’s AP Offensive Player of the Year, the second-most accurate field goal kicker in NFL history and a former third overall draft pick? Oh, and did you know that each of those individuals used to be members of the Carolina Panthers?
Let’s take a look at some familiar faces from the AFC champion Kansas City Chiefs and the NFC champion San Francisco 49ers.
For one last time this summer, here is our projection for the Carolina Panthers’ initial 53-man roster.
Did Friday night’s preseason finale do much to change our outlook for the Carolina Panthers’ initial 53-man roster?
Here is our final projection of the program:
New Panthers assistant defensive backs coach DeAngelo Hall is making quite an impression in his first season on the sidelines.
The transition from player to coach can be a jarring one for some in the NFL, but not for DeAngelo Hall.
Hall, a cornerback of 14 pro seasons, is currently in the middle of his first summer as the assistant defensive backs coach for the Carolina Panthers. And the 39-year-old is seemingly taking right to his new role.
“DeAngelo is such a good coach,” head coach Frank Reich said after Saturday’s practice. “I am truly amazed. A lot of times, former players—takes a couple years to get some of that former player out of you and become a coach and be able to see, be able understand that our days are over, this is their day and we don’t have to talk about our day. All we’re focused on is their day. He gets that.
“He’s helpin’ the guys, he’s makin’ an impact. I think he’s bringin’ out the best in that group. He’s got the right mindset. I think he’s adding a lot to the equation.”
A former first-round pick, Hall ended his long NFL career as a three-time Pro Bowler—something cornerback Keith Taylor Jr. and the rest of the defense doesn’t take lightly.
“It’s been big, man,” Taylor Jr. said of having Hall on staff. “[Pro Bowl] corner. He had 40 picks in the league, so there’s a lot of respect for him. Any time he has a word to say in the room, the whole room goes silent. Everybody takes his coaching points. Everybody respects him.”
As a player, Hall was known to have quite a few words to say. But now, those words may have even more meaning.
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The “Madden NFL 24” ratings for the Panthers’ cornerbacks were rolled out on Thursday.
One of the biggest questions marks for the Carolina Panthers in 2023 is the cornerback position. Between injuries to their starters in Jaycee Horn and Donte Jackson and a lack of discernible depth, they don’t exactly boast the most trustworthy of groups in the NFL.
But, can you trust them on the sticks?
Here are the “Madden NFL 24” ratings for the Carolina corners:
The Panthers still may have some work to do before reconvening for training camp later this summer.
The Carolina Panthers have been remarkably active this offseason. Yet, their work on the roster seems far from done.
Here are the three positions the teams should address before entering training camp later this month.
What’s the one last move the Panthers should make this offseason? ESPN’s Field Yates believes they must address their lack of depth at CB.
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The Carolina Panthers have had themselves quite the offseason. Heck, they made a three-part documentary series about it.
But according to ESPN NFL insider Field Yates, they still need a cherry on top.
Yates, in a list released on Wednesday, made one last suggestion for each of the NFL’s 32 rosters. For the Panthers, he opts not for a resolution to the future of two-time Pro Bowl pass rusher Brian Burns, but instead thinks it’s the back of the defense that needs more immediate attention.
He writes:
Star cornerback Jaycee Horn missed the closing portion of OTAs and the team’s minicamp, which served as a reminder of just how thin the cornerback room is behind him. Donte Jackson is returning from a torn Achilles suffered in November, while CJ Henderson had his fifth-year option declined this offseason after a rocky first three years in the league. As is the case with most positions right now, there aren’t a ton of obvious starting-level players available, but Carolina needs to pad the depth here.
Outside of Henderson, the current depth outside of the injured starters in Horn and Jackson consists of Keith Taylor Jr., Stantley Thomas-Oliver III, Greg Mabin, Herb Miller and a trio of undrafted rookies. While Horn and Jackson are expected to be back by training camp, yeah, that ain’t much depth to speak of in any event.
A few notable names who remain in free agency include Marcus Peters, Ronald Darby, Casey Hayward, Troy Hill and Bryce Callahan.
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Who is Panthers secondary/cornerbacks coach Jonathan Cooley impressed by so far? He answered that question on Thursday.
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When it comes to concern regarding depth for the Carolina Panthers, much of the attention has been aimed towards the team’s receiving corp. But it’s the opposite part of the personnel that may be the bigger issue.
New secondary/cornerbacks coach Jonathan Cooley spoke with reporters following Thursday’s installment of organized team activities. When asked about the state of the cornerbacks room, Cooley just played it cool.
“I’ve really enjoyed it,” he said. “We have veterans in there, we have young players that we’re very excited about. And then, just developing the backend depth—because corner is a position that is super important for us in the NFL, to exist how we wanna play on defense. So, just creating more versatility with those guys has been helpful. But I really like the guys we have in the room and I couldn’t be more excited about working with them.”
Outside of Jaycee Horn, the Panthers don’t have one sure thing at the position. Behind Horn at the top of the chart sits Donte Jackson, who is still recovering from an Achilles tear, as well as CJ Henderson and Keith Taylor Jr.—both of whom didn’t exactly shine when given the chance at the end of last season.
Nonetheless, Cooley seems encouraged by all four men at this point in the offseason.
“Most of them are relatively young,” he replied when asked of who’s impressed him most. “As far as the younger guys, Jaycee’s in his first contract. He’s done an excellent job for us. Keith Taylor’s done an excellent job with us—just getting better and better. D-Jax’s probably the older one and he’s been a great teammate. CJ Henderson’s done an excellent job in the role that he’s been able to play during this spring. So, we’re really excited about a lot of them.”
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So, uh, does anyone want to guess who got the two lowest grades for the Panthers in Week 17’s loss to the Buccaneers?
Sunday was an afternoon of highs and lows for the Carolina Panthers in their 30-24 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Let’s see who Pro Football Focus graded out as their highs and lows for the team in their Week 17 defeat.
A disappointing result for the Panthers did have a few bright spots, including a career day from a rising star in Frankie Luvu.
As a whole, the Carolina Panthers went from stud to dud on Sunday. But how about on an individual scale?
Here are the best and worst performances from the team in their 30-24 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Jaycee Horn wasn’t on the field for the Panthers’ painful Week 17 loss to the Buccaneers, and it showed.
A once-improbable shot at an NFC South crown seemed all too real on Sunday afternoon, when the Carolina Panthers carried a two-score lead in the fourth quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Unfortunately for them, Tom Brady happened.
Let’s sift through that and the other big takeaways from the fateful 30-24 loss in Week 17.
