Panthers Sign Burton, Place Leonard on IR

The Carolina Panthers can’t catch a break this season, and the team is again down on defensive linemen after both Maake Kemoeatu and his replacement Louis Leonard suffered major injuries earlier this season. The Panthers have a huge void to fill at defensive tackle because of Kemoeatu and Leonard’s absences, but the team took steps to move onward yesterday, placing Leonard on the injured reserve to make room for another replacement on the roster. After moving Leonard to the IR, the Panthers signed defensive tackle Antwon Burton, who was released earlier this season by the St. Louis Rams.

Burton, a 6-foot-2, 325-pound defensive tackle out of Temple, played with the Denver Broncos in ‘06 and ‘07, joining the Kansas City Chiefs in 2008 before playing with the St. Louis Rams during this preseason. Hopefully the Panthers’ recent curse on defensive linemen won’t be passed along to Burton; Louis Leonard, who signed with the Panthers less than a month ago, is already off the active roster, having spent just weeks playing with Carolina before fracturing his ankle in last week’s game against the Falcons.

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