Labor Day Weekend wasn’t a holiday for Marty Hurney.
It probably wasn’t even very fun as the Panthers – along with the rest of the NFL – trimmed their rosters from 90 to 53, releasing 37 players, all of whom the Panthers liked for one reason or another at some point, on Saturday and then three more on Sunday as the team tweaked their team with waiver claims. Before practice Monday morning, Hurney took some time to explain why he made the moves he made, what he saw in certain players and how the numbers game can make this weekend incredibly hard.
Here’s what the Panthers GM had to say.
“They’re all hard [cuts]. Torrey, particularly, he’s such a class act and he brought to our group what we thought when we got him a year ago, but we had a chance to get a couple of guys that would help us on special teams as well as receiver – we felt like those were the moves to make.
How much did his knee play into the decision?
“It was moreso when you get down to that fifth and sixth receiver spots, you want to try to get guys who can be fourcore special teamers or returners or somebody that can help you in those areas because you know they’re not going to get on the field as a receiver too much. That was the biggest reason we did it.”
Can you talk about the kicker decision?
“For one, Joey Slye came in and has been great. Going into the final preseason game there were 14 teams that hadn’t missed a field goal and we were one of them. In Graham’s situation, it was a case where he had soreness in the plant leg from early on. I think both he and we – when we got to a point where we thought he was going to be able to get over the hump but every time he went to kick there was still soreness there. Even when he did, the day after, it was sore. When we got to that last week and he couldn’t kick during the final preseason game, I talked to him the week of that game and we had to put him on injured reserve, and the thing is just to get him healthy and figure out what’s best for that leg.”
Why not keep on the initial 53 so that Gano could return?
“It just came down to numbers and you don’t want to risk guys. The hard part about that rule is not only do you have to get him on the final roster but you have to get through 4 o’clock Sunday. So we just made the decision. And Joey has been kicking well. We thought this was best to give Graham the time, not to push Graham and figure out what is best for him and how get the leg better. I think it’s leg more than [knee].”
How do you feel about your tackle depth?
“I think we have guys who can swing and play a lot of positions. With Daryl and Taylor and Greg and then Dennis Daley can play there and Brandon Greene … We feel good about the tackle position. You look at teams across the league and I think there are a lot of people looking for interior offensive linemen. Obviously, I think we’re OK if we stay healthy, but any team, if you get some injuries in there, you are always going to be looking.”
What is Greg Little’s status?
“He’s in the protocol but he’s doing well – but he’s in the protocol right now.”
LB Jordan Kunaszyk
What was it about Jordan Kunaszyk that made you want to keep him on the roster?
“Gosh, there are so many things about Jordan. He had a terrific preseason and training camp and he made plays. He’s a guy who studies all the time. He’s just going to get better and better, and we just felt like we had a young linebacker who really has the skillset, has our DNA, has the approach down and we just didn’t want to risk putting him out there. I think he would have been a guy teams would have found attractive. He’s just going to get better and better and he gives us good depth. He’s going to get better at special teams – that was one of those decisions we went back and forth with, but at the end of the day I think we made the right one.”
Who would you consider the #2 running back behind Christian?
“They both have different skillsets, so I think they are both going to be used in different ways. It would be unfair to say one is two, one is three. Obviously ,Reggie’s receiving skills are very good and he’s gotten much better as a runner. He put on 10 or 12 pounds in the offseason and he is a guy that you point to – he came in as a rookie free agent, worked hard, changed his body and has really become a factor for us at that position. Jordan has a different skillset – is more of an inside type of runner but he can bounce it outside. He breaks a lot of tackles. I think you find a way to use both of them.”
Up Next: Hurney on the three new Panthers, Cam’s Health, Cutting Taylor Heinicke and More
