Just returned from watching a rather lengthy Thursday morning practice that went for more than two hours… Here are 10 observations…
1. Carolina’s first-team offense looked like this: QB Matt Moore, RB DeAngelo Williams, FB Tony Fiammetta, TE Jeff King, WRs Kenneth Moore and Dwayne Jarrett, LT Jordan Gross, LG Travelle Wharton, C Ryan Kalil, RG Mackenzy Bernadeau and RT Geoff Schwartz. Jeff Otah and Steve Smith, both on PUP, did not practice.
2. Carolina’s first-team defense looked like this: RDE Charles Johnson, RDT Ed Johnson, LDT Tank Tyler, LDE Tyler Brayton, WLB Jon Beason, MLB Dan Connor, SLB James Anderson, CBs Chris Gamble and Richard Marshall, FS Charles Godfrey and SS Sherrod Martin. Louis Leonard is on the PUP list and did not practice. It looks like the Panthers have made their decision to keep Beason at WLB.
3. Charles Johnson (leg) and LB Jamar Williams (hamstring) went down with injuries, but neither appear serious. Everette Brown stepped in for Johnson.
4. Today’s toughest hitter was backup LB Jordan Senn, who clobbered a few guys during the morning show including backup FB Rashawn Jackson. Senn spent time on the roster last year as a backup but didn’t see much action. The guy is cut. He looks like a personal trainer. Completely bald and all muscle.
5. WR Armanti Edwards started off working with the third team at wide receiver. WRs Brandon LaFell and Wallace Wright worked with the second team. Edwards was first up on punt returns, however. Still haven’t seen the Panthers put in the Wildcat for Edwards. LaFell looked sharp running routes, but Edwards still needs time.
6. This is a very fast team. Young, but very fast. Ron Meeks stressed running to the ball on defense.
7. Moore is looking like a leader out there. He’s talking to guys, encouraging them and really taking this team under his wing. He really seems comfortable and is taking on the leadership role with Jake Delhomme now gone. Moore did throw one bad pass and was picked by Chris Gamble, but other than that he looked very sharp.
8. WR Dwayne Jarrett at one point cramped up during practice after appearing to run the wrong route. He did return. Jarrett has to start showing something. Anything.
9. QBs Jimmy Clausen and Hunter Cantwell split reps with the second team at quarterback during the morning session. Expect to see a lot of that as camp wears on. My guess is that in the end Clausen will be the No. 2 quarterback. They certainly paid him like one.
10. The Panthers worked a lot of indivdual drills, focusing on little things like downfield blocking. The overall practice was very physical with a lot of hitting.
Oh by the way, yes that was me on ESPN Sports Center yesterday, but I have no idea who the guy with hair was in the photo. We’ll have more updates as the day progresses. Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter (@carolinagrowl) for my in-practice updates from the field.
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