To most fans, the Carolina Panthers annual Fan Fest is less a practice session and more a chance to warm up for real football. Less of a scouting session to see if Jeff Richards will push for the last cornerback spot (not based on this practice, he had a bad one, dropping an interception and leaving receivers wide open all around him) and more of a training camp for the fans, an opportunity to get used to seeing their favorite players in their favorite stadium. Fan Fest allows the players to be a little bit more relaxed, so when the stands ring out with calls of ‘Benjamin!’ or ‘Peppers!’, the stars are more likely to turn around and acknowledge them. Yelling Devin Funchess’ name will not get you a second look during a real game, but tonight the lanky wide receiver gave a wink and a point to the children screaming his name from the front row of Section 128. While fun was had cheering for roster hopeful Kaelin Clay catching a long bomb for a score and Cam Newton leading his traditional Fan Fest slow motion wave, the proceedings tend to feel a bit muted when your franchise quarterback isn’t throwing, your big free agent left tackle is sidelined after a handful of drills, and the conquering hero who has returned for one last run before going into the hall of fame gets a veteran’s night off. But the crowd that measured over 58,000 strong was loud in both voice and spirit, even though sometimes practice can be less than thrilling. Football is close.
As always, our storylines we spotted at tonight’s practice:
Cam Still Not Throwing
Cam Newton didn’t throw for the fourth straight practice, and with an off day tomorrow, it will be an interesting decision for the coaches and trainers whether he is ready to throw on Sunday. That will most likely be the deciding factor on whether or not the quarterback gets the call on Wednesday night against the Texans in the first preseason game. Newton doesn’t need to throw to have a good time though, leading the crowd in the wave in many iterations: both directions, slow, fast, and criss-cross, egging on the crowd the entire practice. His crowd work wasn’t the only thing that he was working on, installing offensive sets and soaking up as much coaching as possible, with Ron Rivera making a point to say what an excellent week of practice he’s had. Not time to panic yet; the first game isn’t for over a month.
Another Wide Receiver
Tonight’s practice was a good one for Kaelin Clay, who had two consecutive plays in which he looked like an NFL receiver, making a sliding catch in the end zone on the end of a forty yard bomb from Joe Webb and a twenty yard pass in which he found a soft spot in the zone. Austin Duke, however, was conspicuous by his absence, not connecting on a long pass and only making a couple of receptions throughout practice. While it’s obviously still early, the fifth wide receiver spot right now belongs to either Damiere Byrd or Brenton Bersin due to their special teams presence. Either one (or both) could make the team with a strong showing in the preseason.
Nagging Injuries
I’d like to focus on the positives that I saw tonight from the injured players. While left tackle Matt Kalil was fully dressed, he headed to the sidelines after only a few drills, but told reporters that he would be ready to practice fully on Sunday and was just trying to acclimate to the humidity and work his way in slowly. Again, it’s still over a month before the season starts. Quicksilver rookie wide receiver Curtis Samuel showed a small burst of his speed, running a single sprint off the sidelines during stretching, and it certainly did look like the acceleration fans are hoping for is still there. It will be interesting to see when he is ready to practice in full. Here were the rest of the players that sat out tonight:
- LB Jared Norris
- DT Toby Johnson
- DT Kyle Love
- WR Fred Ross
- CB Zack Sanchez
- CB Corn Elder
- DT Kawann Short
- TE Scott Simonson
- DE Julius Peppers (Vet Day)
- DE Charles Johnson (Vet Day)
The Rook
Christian McCaffrey didn’t have any eye-popping plays, but his ovation was on par with Julius Peppers, Greg Olsen, and Luke Kuechly whenever his name was mentioned or face shown on the jumbotron. He did have a nice swing pass that he was able to sneak between two defenders in space to break free for some yardage, as well as a short yardage touchdown (fantasy football players, rejoice!) to spark the crowd. He took a moment before entering the field of play in the tunnel, perhaps soaking in the moment before he ran onto a professional football field for the first time.
Be sure to follow us on twitter at @RRiotReport for constant updates as they happen. Have questions or want us to focus on a specific player or matchup? Let us know in the comments!
Previous Training Camp Reports:
- July 26, 2017
- July 27, 2017
- July 28, 2017
- July 29, 2017
- July 30, 2017
- August 1, 2017
- August 2, 2017
- August 3, 2017
