Robinson Agree To Terms

According to league sources, the Carolina Panthers have agreed to contract terms with fifth-round draft pick Duke Robinson. This will leave the Panthers with three draft picks they need to negotiate with to conclude their contracts. Robinson was a star guard at Oklahoma. He agreed to a four-year contract, which he did not sign as of mid-evening on Thursday. However, the former Sooners is expected to sign soon. The Panthers’ other unsigned draft picks are second rounders Sherrod Martin (cornerback), Everette Brown (defensive end), plus third-round defensive tackle Corvey Irvin.

Robinson stands in at 6′5,” 329 pounds. He was “A finalist for the Outland Trophy (top interior lineman) and a two-time All-American, Robinson leaves Oklahoma as one of the more decorated interior blockers in a long time. A massive road grader whose size and strength helped pave the way for the Sooners’ amazing offensive firepower.” The key strengths for Robinson is that he has the balance and good hand play necessary to protect the passer. What is his negatives? Scouts have some concern about whether the guard will be able to hold up to the lateral quickness of the NFL’s elite interior defensive lineman.

Purchase Carolina Panthers tickets at stubhub.com and enjoy the game.

No New Deal For Julius Peppers

Yesterday was the deadline for NFL teams to sign their franchise players to long-term contracts. The Carolina Panthers did not extend their one-year contract for defensive end Julius Peppers. Peppers’ agent, Carl Carey told the press that “Both sides tried,” but no agreement was reached. The agent continued to say that Peppers is looking forward to the season. Carolina Panthers general manager Marty Hurney declined to make a statement through a team spokesman. Peppers’ one-year contract is worth $16.683 million. The defensive end “can earn more than $2 million more in incentives that carry out for his previous contract.” The Panthers could have gained some salary cap space by signing Peppers to a long-term deal. Now the Panthers cannot negotiate with the defensive star until after the 2009-10 season. “They’ll have three options following the season: Sign him to a long-term deal, franchise him again with a one-year tender of more than $20 million, or allow him to become an unrestricted free agent and lose him without any compensation from another team.” What do you think will happen? My guess is that the Carolina Panthers will not sign him to a long term deal and Peppers will become an unrestricted free agent after this season.

Purchase Carolina Panthers tickets at stubhub.com

Power of the NFC South

Offseason bets have already been placed on which division of the NFL will be the strongest this year, and while the AFC East is always a tough contender with the Patriots, Jets, Dolphins and Bills in the mix, the NFC South will surely be giving the AFC East some stiff competition this year. The NFC South harbors a number of top running teams in the league, among these being the Panthers, Saints, Buccaneers and Falcons. While the Bucs were perhaps one of the surprise teams from 2008 and Drew Brees’ Saints have been causing a ruckus on the football scene, it’s still the Carolina Panthers we’re looking at to take the division this year - for several reasons.

Led by the dynamic duo of Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams, the Panthers’ running offense is hands-down one of the best in the league. Despite QB Jake Delhomme’s woes, the Panthers found their groove last season (before the ugly playoffs), and the two running backs are back and ready for more in ‘09. The Panthers have also taken this offseason to stock up on their defense, drafting DE Everette Brown, CD Sherrod Martin and DT Corey Irvin and also keeping Julius Peppers for another round. The addition of defensive coordinator Ron Meeks (formerly of the Indianapolis Colts) is also a compelling factor for the Panthers’ defense to soar this year, and although the New Orleans Saints are looking to be a strong team in the NFC South this season, we’ve got the Panthers locked in at division champions this year, judging from the offseason.

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

Profile: Larry Beavers

For rookie receiver Larry Beavers, football has largely been a game full of adjustments. Beavers, who played college ball at the D3 school Wesley College, was asked to make the transition from quarterback to wide receiver while at Wesley, marking the first significant change for him. “When they moved me, I said, ‘Dang, I played quarterback all my life, and now they’ve got me moving to wide receiver.’ I wanted to quit football. The coaches talked me into it, and said it would be a great fit for me.”

A great fit it was indeed, especially as Beavers got to add a little special teams into the mix while playing receiver in college, pulling in all kinds of recruiters for his incredible talent. His whopping figures (39.5 yards per kickoff return and 29.2 yards per punt return) helped draw attention to the very small Wesley College, and now that Beavers has been picked up by the Carolina Panthers, more changes are about to ensue. Seeing his incredible ability to adapt, however, it shouldn’t be too hard for the receiver to make the change from college to pro ball, even though the differences between the two divisions are massive. Beavers could really help the Panthers’ iffy special teams this year, and we’ll find out soon if he makes the final cut!

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

Panthers’ Training Camp Comes into Sight

With July already underway, it’s only a matter of weeks until the Carolina Panthers take over Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, where the team will hold its 2009 training camp. The practice schedule for the Panthers’ training camp has already been released, and practices will tentatively run from August 3 to August 19 (though the preseason starts August 17 with a game against the New York Giants,) with varying two-a-day practices mixed in. Practice times range from 9:10 a.m. to 6:40 p.m. and rotate days, with some days having two practices and others having one. The Panthers’ training camp festivities also includes the Fan Fest at the Bank of America Stadium at 11 a.m. on August 8, open to the public.

Aside from Fan Fest, there will also be a program called Panther Pals taking place during training camp on August 3, 5, 7, 10, 12 and 14, where children ages six to 13 are invited to register for the chance to meet the Carolina Panthers after practice. Five names will be chosen at random on these days, and the children selected will get Panthers t-shirts and get the opportunity to watch practice on field level and then have a meet-and-greet session with the players after practice. All training camp practices are free and open to the public, with sessions lasting between 90 minutes and two hours.

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

Sizing Up the ‘09 Panthers

It’s not yet go time for the Carolina Panthers, but the team is already starting to draw comparisons to last year’s crop of talent. The Panthers have lost a significant number of players after trying to squeeze under the salary cap in the middle of the Julius Peppers situation, and while the Peppers fiasco is now ironed out (for this year, at least,) the Panthers are still in that rebuilding stage, though the team has picked up a significant number of talented rookies and veterans in the offseason, as well.

The biggest losses for the Panthers from last year include those of long snapper Jason Kyle (New Orleans), cornerback Ken Lucas (Seattle), wide receiver D.J. Hackett (UFA), tackle Jeremy Bridges (Washington), running back Nick Goings (UFA) , lineman Geoff Hangartner (Buffalo) and tackle Frank Omiyale (Chicago). On the flip side, however, Carolina has already signed undrafted rookie free agents Gerald Cadogan (OT), Marlon Favorite (DT) and Jamall Lee (RB), while drafted rookies Everette Brown (DE), Captain Munnerlyn (CB), Sherrod Martin (CB), Corvey Irvin (DT), Mike Goodson (RB), Tony Fiammetta (FB) and Duke Robinson (OG) are expected to fill in some of the holes, as well. The Panthers should be just fine in depth, and with QB Jake Delhomme at the throw and Julius Peppers handling the defense, this Carolina team should be just as tough as last year!

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

The One That Got Away

The passing of former Tennessee Titans quarterback and NFL co-MVP Steve McNair has caused an enormous wave of support from the NFL as the entire country mourns his death, and as LP Field is open for a McNair tribute today, we’re considering the path the Carolina Panthers took in the 1995 draft, when the Panthers almost hooked Air McNair as their first draft pick.

A starting franchise, the Panthers had the No. 1 pick in the ‘95 draft, and the team was seriously considering three prospects to draft first: Penn State running back Ki-Jana Carter, Penn State quarterback Kerry Collins and Alcorn State QB Steve McNair. Carolina had mock jerseys printed for each player, but in a trade with Cincinnati, the Panthers swapped their first-round pick to the Bengals for a No. 5 pick. Steve McNair ended up being drafted third overall by the Houston Oilers (later becoming the Tennessee Titans), and the Panthers selected the other quarterback, Kerry Carter, as the team’s first-ever pick.

The Panthers, a franchise expansion in 1995, had perhaps the most significant draft in ‘95, as the team was just starting up. McNair was questioned by reporters in the weeks leading up  to the draft what he thought about potentially being Carolina’s first-ever draft pick, to which he responded, “Don’t look at the school I go to. Don’t consider me just a black quarterback. Consider me as a person first and consider me in what I do on the field. That’s going out there doing my best, giving 100 percent every play and doing what it takes to win. I don’t ever have in my mind that I’m going to fail. I won’t let you down.” Indeed, although he was never a Panther, McNair did not let anyone down, and in the days following his death, it’s still his life that the country honors.

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

Jonathan Stewart: Hip-Hop Maestro?

He can most certainly play football, but is running back Jonathan Stewart just as talented when it comes to music? According to HipHopDX, the former University of Oregon standout has a passion for music and is setting his eyes on a side project away from the NFL, said to be teaming up with Akon and his Konvict Muzik before the Carolina Panthers’ training camp starts in August. Stewart will meet with the hip-hop guru and outline a plan for a future collaboration of sorts, setting the bar high for athlete/musicians.

Jonathan Stewart recently spoke on why he wanted to team up with Akon specifically, saying, “When I say Akon, his music, when you listen to what he’s saying, it’s really not negative. There’s good vibes there, for the most part. His music is positive, with a positive tone. I don’t want to hear my music being played and someone degrading women. I’m limited to that factor, but there’s a lot to be talked about. If anybody wants to use my beats, I want to maintain my integrity that I have as a person.” Stay tuned for more news on Jonathan Stewart’s hip-hop endeavors, and in the meantime look for the running back to dominate the football field in Carolina once again this season!

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

Will Kevin Brock Make the Final Roster?

6-foot-5, 255-pound rookie tight end Kevin Brock knows what it’s like to play out a waiting game. The dedicated player spent four years as a walk-on for Rutgers University’s football program before finally earning a scholarship in his redshirt senior year at the school, and now the undrafted rookie is about to work his way up again, signing with the Carolina Panthers in April and having to do it all over again. Brock, a native of Hackensack, NJ, has been pouring every ounce of effort and sweat into the football field over the last couple months at the Panthers’ set of summer school practices, and now he’ll hopefully get to stick around for training camp, coming up early next month in South Carolina.

Though he’s now a hard-hitting player competing with some of the best in the entire NFL, Kevin Brock has a shot at making the Panthers’ final roster in the next few weeks, especially as the tight end has experience working his way up the totem pole. “It’s familiar territory,” Brock recently said. “You come in and you’ve got to work your way up. As a walk-on, you definitely have to earn your keep. You have to show the coaches that you can make plays and that you can be an asset to the offense. It’s the same way here.” We’ll find out over the next several weeks if Brock is to be a Panther for the ‘09 season.

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

Panthers Snag Davie from Jets

The Carolina Panthers are caught in a frenzy of signing and waiving rookies, and this holiday weekend was nothing out of the ordinary for the team, as the Panthers took no time off to celebrate Independence Day and instead commemorated the holiday by rejoicing with the signing of Andrew Davie. Carolina capitalized off New York’s losses with the rookie tight end, claiming Davie off waivers from the Jets over the weekend. The Jets had signed Davie as an undrafted free agent last April, and now the 26-year-old rookie will get his shot in the NFL with the Panthers as a backup behind starter Jeff King and also Dante Rosario and Gary Barnidge.

The 6-foot-4, 256-pound Davie made the switch to the NFL after playing four seasons of minor league baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals. The Little Rock, Arkansas native played football in college for the University of Arkansas and in three seasons with the Razorbacks caught 24 passes for 199 yards and six touchdowns. Andrew Davie is a welcomed addition to the Panthers and will be sure to provide depth in the team’s training camp, which begins early next month.

To get Carolina Panthers tickets, go to StubHub.

 Page 2 of 3 « 1  2  3 »