James Bradberry is conducting an interview in front of his locker for multiple media members, something he’s had to do for the past two seasons as the Panthers top cornerback – he’s just finishing up saying something nice about the rookie cornerback who will be starting opposite him on Sunday against the Cowboys, a second-round pick making his first start in his first NFL game, just as Bradberry did two seasons ago – when a shirtless Donte Jackson sneaks behind him, exaggeratedly tiptoeing like a cartoon villain to steal some lotion out of Bradberry’s locker.
“It’s all good,” Bradberry chuckled. “He’s like my little brother, so I let him take stuff out of my locker from time to time.”
He pauses and turns towards the showers where Jackson has already turned the corner.
“AS LONG AS HE GIVES IT BACK!” Bradberry yells with a grin – a moment later, Jackson pokes his head around the wall to try and decipher who’d ratted him out.
Little brother, indeed.
Just Play Your Game
As Jackson prepares to make his first NFL start, his teammates – Bradberry included – have repeated the same mantra; it’s just football, something Jackson has been playing his entire life. But the last admission you’re going to get from the braggadocious rookie is one of nerves.
“It’s just the speed of it,” said Jackson, who knows something about speed after running a 4.32 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. “I know it’s going to be different from preseason, but I think the nervous ship had sailed for me probably within the second week of camp – I just feel more comfortable than I did during OTAs and minicamp so by the time we came back out here, the nervous level went all the way down and the confidence level went up.”
“Once I know that they can trust me out there on an island by myself as a young guy – now that I know that I’m out there [and] I have their trust, I’m just out there playing the game and playing within the system now.”
Playing within the system is incredibly important for not just a rookie, but all the pieces of a revamped secondary that ranked last in the league over the final eight weeks of the season in terms of passing yards allowed – with veteran Da’Norris Searcy expected to get the start at safety next to Mike Adams and Jackson across from Bradberry, new defensive coordinator Eric Washington is hopeful that the defensive backfield can get back to ‘playing like a Panther’ – takeaways, sacks and big plays.
“All he has to do is go out there, take a deep breath and embrace it,” said Searcy. “At the end of the day, it’s still football – something he’s been doing for his whole life; he’s got to remember, he’s not out there by himself. He’s got a lot of proven veterans and guys out there playing with him – don’t do too much, just do your job.”
“Just play your game.”
A Healthy Matchup
Photo Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
While the Panthers won’t have to face off against big names like Jason Witten – who retired after 15 years during the offseason – and Dez Bryant, who is still a free agent after a much-publicized divorce from Dallas in April, they’re not underestimating a Dallas passing game that’s led by third-year quarterback Dak Prescott; Mario Addison called Prescott a ‘baby Russell Wilson’ and cautioned his teammates to take some early shots and not let him out of the pocket – Prescott is at his most dangerous when he’s on the run.
But it might be the smallest matchup that looms the largest on Sunday as the 5’9 Captain Munnerlyn faces off with 5’8 Cole Beasley in the slot – Munnerlyn had an inconsistent 2017 and is anxious to get on the field and show that he’s ready to live up to the larger role that he’s hopeful Washington and the team will entrust him with this season after playing the fewest snaps of his career in 2017.
“They’ve got great players, and I know I’ve got my plate full this week – I think Cole Beasley is probably one of the top slot receivers in the NFL,” said Munnerlyn. “I know I’ve got to go out there and compete against that guy – I’ve got to limit him to catches and make plays on the football. He and Terrence Williams, those are both guys that have been around this offense for a long time and Beasley is definitely one of the best in the league at that position – he’s quick, he’s fast, he’s got all the tools.
“It’s definitely going to be a key matchup in the game and I’m excited for it – I think I’m one of the best, so it’s going to be a great matchup and I’m ready for it.”
All of the Cowboys’ wide receivers have a penchant for run after the catch, so it will be imperative that the team rallies to the ball and makes tackles – limiting the YAC of Allen Hurns, Beasley and rookie Michael Gallup will be essential in shutting down their passing game.
But with the 2018 Cowboys, it’s not necessarily the passing game you’re worried about.
Leaky Zeke
Photo Credit: Ron Jenkins/Getty Images
“When Ezekiel’s back there running, you know how good they are as a football team.”
-Ron Rivera
Addison describes Ezekiel Elliott as ‘leaky’, but most folks just describe him as one of, if not the, best running back in the NFL – all the third-year rusher has done is average almost four and a half yards per carry, over 100 yards per game and almost 11 yards per reception while racking up 25 touchdowns in two seasons; even behind a beat-up offensive line that will be without center Travis Frederick and a gimpy Zack Martin, La’el Collins and Tyron Smith, Elliott will still be a watermark for a defense that prides itself on being one of the best front sevens in the NFL – they haven’t allowed a 100-yard rusher in 20 regular season games, but that mark will be tested on Sunday.
“He’ll test the corners,” said Addison. “For me, I’m a [defensive] end so I have to set the edge up high – I’ve got to keep my eye on that guy, because he’s one of those that will test every hole and you think you’ve got him and he’ll bounce it outside.”
If he’s able to get to the second level, as he has been able to do thus far in his career, the secondary is ready for him – after all, four of the top six tacklers for the Panthers in 2017 came from the defensive backfield; Corn Elder, who will also be playing in his first game, said he’s fighting the nerves and when you’re faced with tackling Ezekiel Elliott, “you’ve got to have a plan.”
“I’m confident in our front seven,” James Bradberry, who had 85 tackles last season, second most on the team, said. “But of course, if he gets to the back seven, we’re going to find a way to get him down, so we’re not too worried about it.”
Ready For Action
“The rookie, #26, he’s going to be a special player. I know he talks a lot, but at the same time, he can back it up. He’s a guy that plays with a lot of swagger that we definitely need – I know he’s ready on Sunday to play his first real NFL game.”
-Captain Munnerlyn
Ron Rivera isn’t shy to talk about how he’s started at least one rookie in every year he’s been head coach of the Carolina Panthers and 2018 will be no different, but what he saw from Jackson on the practice field and during the preseason was enough to make him not only the starter in Week 1, but a DNP in preseason Week 4, an honor usually reserved for veterans who need to preserve their bodies for the regular season.
“Donte’s a solid football player, he’s got some confidence, he’s got some swagger,” Rivera said when he heard that Jackson said he’s not feeling any nerves. “It doesn’t surprise me that he’d say that, but I bet deep down inside he’s got a little twinge.”
Twinge or not, Jackson will be out there on Sunday facing off against the Dallas Cowboys – “America’s Team” – a team some might get excited to make their debut against, but Jackson said this week that he’s not sure why some players get excited for certain teams, because he just gets excited for all of them; perhaps the even-keeled nature of Bradberry is rubbing off on Jackson, as the 25-year old is trying to instill as much knowledge about the NFL to his “little brother” as he can – from learning defense to just being a professional.
And it’s all led to this Sunday’s debut.
“Of course I’m ready,” said Jackson. “I’ve been preparing for a long time, there are a great group of vets around me that helped me prepare and helped me feel more confident about being out there, so I think I’m ready to go out there and be a starting corner in the NFL.”
With a little help from his big brother, of course.
