Carolina Panthers Bolster Practice Squad with Lache Seastrunk

The Carolina Panthers added a sneaky running back to their practice squad today with the signing of rookie sixth-round pick, Lache Seastrunk.  The Panthers added Stephen Hill to the practice squad two-weeks ago, so don’t be surprised to see either of these players on Sundays down the line.

Lache Seastrunk out of Baylor, was once considered an early-second round pick and one of the top running backs in the 2014 Draft class.  He fell in the draft to the Washington Redskins, and was recently released due to a cluttered backfield.

Seastrunk is an explosive back that is capable of bolting for the promised land on any touch.  He is 5’10” and a stout 209-pound back with deceptive speed.  He is a great runner between the tackles, and also has the frame to bounce it outside.  He is an average receiving back, and is not good at pass protection.

The deficiencies that the rookie currently has can hopefully be refined over time, because the talent is definitely there.  His  field-of-vision and playmaking ability is a nice quality to have in a 23-year old rookie, with minimal wear on his tires.

Here is a sample of the deceptive speed and playmaking ability mentioned above from a preseason game against Tampa Bay:

The move was made in an effort to solidify their running back depth after a weekend that saw Mike Tolbert and Fozzy Whitaker join DeAngelo Williams on the sidelines.

GM Dave Gettleman is probably viewing Seastrunk as Kenjon Barner 2.0 and trying to strike lightning in a bottle with this signing.  Seastrunk put up some pretty amazing numbers at Baylor.  Five of his 19 touchdowns came on home run plays of over 65 yards.

“As for Lache, he had his big-play abilities and he’s a good running back. He’s a young kid with a lot of talent, obviously.” – Jay Gruden, Redskins Head Coach (CBSDC)

Gettleman is adding assets that have been cast-off by their former teams and turned them into viable commodities.  He did it last year with Melvin White, Brenton Bersin, Colin Cole and Drayton Florence.  This year he has acquired Fozzy Whitaker, Stephen Hill, Lache Seastrunk, and Antoine Cason.

Gettleman has a plan and it requires a sharp nose for talent and rolling the dice on castoffs.

Lache Seastrunk is a name that Panthers’ fans should be excited about.  We will look at Carolina’s 2015 opening day roster and see names like Stephen Hill, Lache Seastrunk and Melvin White, and be proud of our GM for having the foresight to recognize talent.  Not every hole can be filled via the draft, so it’s moves like this that need to be made.