Let’s get this out of the way – James Bradberry is low-key hilarious.
Maybe it’s the fact that he’s extremely honest, like when he said that he would like to say that he doesn’t check his mentions on social media, but he does. Maybe it’s the deadpan delivery, like when he said that it’d be stupid to reply to someone on Twitter, in front of a dozen reporters who likely immediately tweeted his sentiments.
Or maybe it’s that he’s always getting himself into hilarious situations that some people might be embarrassed about, like the time the cornerback from Samford University who will turn 25 this week was fixing his mother’s toilet as he was drafted by the Panthers in 2016. Or the fact that his sack against the Eagles last season was his first since, well, ever.
This offseason it was swimming.
Bradberry was looking to add something to his workout plan, an exercise that was perhaps less stressful on his joints – and while he had already tried yoga, he thought he’d give swimming a shot, heading to the uptown Mecklenburg Aquatic Center, the same place that has hosted olympians Ryan Lochte and Cammile Adams, to get some turns in. Bradberry’s impromptu standup set began when a reporter asked how he did at such a high-dollar facility.
“Well, they only charged me $5 to go in there for a day pass; it’s a big pool, but it didn’t cost that much.”
Good opener.
While Bradberry might not be trying out his stand-up routines on any wideouts this year, the team is expecting a lot from him as he enters camp for the second consecutive year as the #1 cornerback in the locker room – not only on the field, but off the field as he transitions from young player to veteran, helping rookies like Donte Jackson and second-year players like Corn Elder along in their development.
“Maturity is a good word for it; he has matured,” Ron Rivera said about Bradberry. “He’s got the right type of skill set – he’s got good length, he’s got good size, he’s a physical corner, he runs well, he uses his hands and has got good eyes, he’s just got to continue to grow and develop as a young player – remember, he’s going into his third year and this is usually when you see guys really start to ascend.”
Ascension will be necessary to improve the Panthers secondary group after they were one of the worst defenses against the pass during the final eight weeks of the season, and Pro Football Focus ranked them the 29th best group in the league entering 2018, despite the additions of Donte Jackson, Da’Norris Searcy and Rashaan Gaulden.
“It’s pretty disrespectful,” Bradberry said after practice this week about the PFF report. “That’s one of our goals that we’ve got to accomplish this year is to be ranked higher – get some respect around the league. You want to be respected around the league and you want people to notice.”
One of the reasons that the Panthers did so much work in the offseason on their secondary – drafting Jackson and Gaulden along with signing Da’Norris Searcy and the now-injured Ross Cockrell to complement Bradberry in the backfield while competing with last season’s Kevon Seymour acquisition – was to try and find some consistency in the spot opposite Bradberry. It wasn’t his 2016 draftmate Daryl Worley, who was traded to Philadelphia in March, and it won’t be Bashaud Breeland, whom the team tried to sign as free agency opened, only to have his offer voided by a failed physical.
That consistency will be necessary, especially since Bradberry says that he plans to follow the #1 wide receiver of the opponent during the 2018 season, as he has done in the past – the NFC South might be the best division in football when it comes to receivers, but Bradberry says there’s one that stands out above the rest; thanks to a new contract, Julio Jones will be on the field when the Panthers head down to Atlanta in Week 2, but Bradberry has a tactic to hold up the player who’s gone over 1,400 yards receiving every season since 2014.
“He’s probably number one,” Bradberry said about Jones, who had 11 catches for 198 yards against the Panthers in two games last season. “All of them are pretty good, but I’d say he’s probably number one. You look at the offensive coordinator, you look at his previous history and what he likes to run, his route concepts and stuff like that – situational football, where they’re at on the field, what they might run and things like that.”
“Pretty much all the spotlight is going to be on me when the game comes on – the ball’s going to be coming my way, regardless, so I feel like I have to be consistent no matter what.”
The additions that the Panthers have brought in on offense have helped prepare Bradberry and the rest of his defensive teammates for facing the arms-heavy NFC South, as practicing against Torrey Smith, Jarius Wright and rookie DJ Moore in addition to the returning Devin Funchess, Curtis Samuel and Damiere Byrd everyday has helped not only Bradberry improve, but the rest of the secondary as well – iron sharpens iron, as they say.
“Well, they added Torrey and he’s a deep threat – he’s very fast; he gets up on you really quick and eats up your cushion, so he makes you open up quick,” Bradberry said about Smith, who he has faced off with in practice a few times thus far during training camp. “It’s different, because a lot of times in our division we go against bigger receivers, so when you add some speed out there, it adds a different dynamic for you as a corner.”
Bradberry starred last season during training camp and has been outstanding this year as well, matching up mostly with #1 wideout Devin Funchess; since the pads have gone on over the weekend, Bradberry has shown that growth, that ascension that Ron Rivera spoke about – the Panthers are going to need it if they plan to go further than a first-round playoff exit, an exit that was, at least in part, due to a 376 yard, two touchdown performance by Drew Brees and the Saints in New Orleans.
But let’s not dwell on past events – let’s go back to the pool.
While Bradberry didn’t see any Olympians at the MAC, just some “locked-in” elderly folks and children swimming in the world-class natatorium – it’s clear that the next Michael Phelps definitely doesn’t wear #24 for the Panthers, because while Bradberry says he does plan to add it into his routine going forward, he doesn’t have the same stamina at swimming as he does at running.
“I tried to do a mile, but I ended up only doing like a quarter-mile. Swimming is hard.”
That line brought the house down.
