The second day of training camp is in the books, and the Spartanburg heat reared it’s ugly head as the humidity drove temperatures for the 3PM practice over 90 degrees as the sun beat down – CJ Anderson refused to give up his sweats though, saying after practice that no, he’s not worried about his attire and yes, he’s drinking plenty of water – “This is my sixth year in the National Football League, I think I know how to practice; I’ve been practicing like this for six years, so this doesn’t bother me.”
After the glitz and glamour of playing in front of thousands of fans and new owner David Tepper last night at Gibbs Stadium to kick off training camp, today’s afternoon session felt like more of the norm, as players got back to attempting to win either their spot on the roster, more playing time or just a chance to get better each day.
One story that stuck out from early in the session was among the offensive line group during the positional workouts: traditionally, there are two groups of offensive lineman working together, the first being the starters and immediate backups – picture the Kalils, Trai Turner, Tyler Larsen, Taylor Moton, et al – and another group of players that are either trying to move up the depth chart or make the roster – picture Norman Price or Kyle Friend – they do drills on either side of one goalpost on Field 3, with John Matsko working with the first group and an assistant working with the second.
Two minutes into the workout, Matsko looked over and pulled undrafted rookie Brendan Mahon from the second group to work with the first group. Might mean nothing. Might mean something. But small moments like that make us happy that we’re able to share them with you. Here are some other storylines we noticed today:
- Let’s start with the end of practice, which culminated in a drill pitting the first team offense against the first team defense from the 30-yard line. It only lasted two plays as Cam Newton threw a picture-perfect pass to Greg Olsen in the left corner of the field at the five-yard line and Olsen cruised into the end zone – it looked as if Mike Adams could have gotten there, but Newton put it in between Olsen’s numbers. Newton has looked crisp thus far (yes, it’s only two practices) as he adjusts to both a new-ish offense with Norv Turner and a host of new weapons – just the ability to practice every day will make a huge difference early in the season.
- INJURY UPDATES: Nothing really to update from yesterday, as Fred Ross, Bryan Cox, Jr and Curtis Samuel rode the bikes, today being joined by Chris Manhertz, who had surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his foot and is hoping to be ready for the start of the regular season – Manhertz is not in a boot and is able to do some light working out, joining the team on the sidelines to watch some of the team drills – Julius Peppers also stood on the sidelines, wearing a bucket hat for the second day in a row. Maybe he’s starting a trend? We know this team loves fashionable hats.
- As the team tries to limit Ryan Kalil’s reps in what is expected to be his final year, they tried out a few options at center aside from presumed backup Tyler Larsen with Greg Van Roten getting some snaps as Ron Rivera experimented with his offensive line, at times utilizing Taylor Moton at right guard between Daryl Williams and Van Roten at center – but Amini Silatolu is a stalwart at left guard currently (yes, again, I realize we’re only two practices in). No changes in the other position battles as Kevon Seymour and Donte Jackson rotated on the outside and Da’Norris Searcy took the first snaps at safety.
- Taylor Heinicke had a day that can only be described as uneven, as he threw a beautiful pass to Austin Duke on what looked like a skinny post for a big gain and then threw what could only be described as a duck that had the fans groaning – I also heard an ill-advised throw to Evan Baylis into traffic described by someone in the crowd as a “Madden Pick” – i.e. when you hit the wrong button and throw an easy interception into a ton of defenders.
- Lorenzo Doss had a good day after a strong spring, with a great pass breakup on a would-be Damiere Byrd reception along with a fumble recovery of a Demetrious Cox strip near the end of practice – it’s going to be a crowded defensive backfield, but Doss could work his way onto the practice squad with a strong summer and preseason.
- Bug Howard also had a strong practice as he made a great catch while being blanketed by fellow rookie Jermaine Carter, Jr along with a couple of other nice catches after working his way open – just as with Doss, there is a logjam at wide receiver, but Howard could work a way onto the practice squad with a strong summer AKA the Damiere Byrd method.
- The first true turnover of camp came when safety Dezmen Southward picked off Taylor Heinicke (told you he had an uneven day) down the stretch and tried desperately to run it back as he was chased from behind by receivers – a great play by Southward as he leaped high, fully extended and pulled in the lofted pass that looked like it should have gone over his head.
- New tight end Cam Serigne got an earful from tight ends coach Pete Hoener during a blocking drill – “Correct yourself! I told you that last time – so correct it.”
- Christian McCaffrey (who is very fast, BTW) took a draw up the middle, cut right and dashed towards the pylon, being chased by rookie Rashaan Gaulden – had this been a game, McCaffrey would have had a chance to score on the 25-yard-ish run, but we’ll never know – as McCaffrey hit the second level of the defense, Cam Newton screamed out “All day!”
- Newton also had fun with the sparse crowd – the combination of Friday practice sandwiched in between the Kickoff Party and the weekend may have had something to do with that – as he took a ball and fired a pass to some fans on the hill, only to have the pass dropped.
- Tight end Jason Vander Laan continues to impress, adding two catches to his total today, and even getting a first-team rep during installs as the second tight end – if you’re looking for a camp crush, you could do worse than the former Ferris State quarterback – yes, I said quarterback.
- A quirk that will almost certainly get changed tomorrow once the pads go on, the team hasn’t really been doing position vs. position one-on-one drills like WR vs. CB or OL vs. DL thus far – but they have added a drill I don’t remember from last year, a 9-on-9 in which there are only three offensive lineman – either the right side or the left side. It’s quite interesting.
See ya’ll tomorrow when the pads go on!
Heading To Training Camp This Summer? Let This Be Your Guide:
