Carolina Panthers make correct changes to rookie minicamp

The Carolina Panthers will be doing rookie minicamp a little differently this year.

The Carolina Panthers will have some changes to their rookie minicamp, and it appears it is change for the better. According to a report from Max Henson of Panthers.com, the Carolina Panthers’ newest players will have more time to learn, something that could pay off in the long run.

The rookie minicamp is slated to have less participants, and be more involved with studying the playbook then work on the field. There is reportedly going to be just over a dozen participants, whereas in other years the organization would have seen anywhere from 28 to 37 players try out for the team.

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With that being said, there will still be field work going on. The first day of the minicamp is Friday, and all participants will take part in two sessions. Saturday will be more of the same, with position drills and individual work being the main focus. This change in format was partially brought on by the Panthers themselves. They signed eight players from the AAF alone, an added surplus that was unexpected.

This is a change for the better. Classroom work is very important, and sometimes it gets overlooked. Especially for the newer players, they need to know what plays are called and how to execute them right away. Memorizing the playbook could be the difference between going home and remaining with the team for some of these players. Field work is great, and there is no doubt there will be some of that as well. However, knowing where you’re supposed to be, or the certain formation of a play, or what individual matchup you are going to have are all very important things to take into consideration.

Hopefully, the rookies will be able to absorb some of that with this emphasis on learning. It was something that could have helped last year for the entire team. At least the rookies will be able to have that advantage before heading into team activities. Learning is half the battle and with so many new faces, this could be a very welcome change. As long as the players are able to execute on the field, this emphasis on learning should benefit the team in the long run.

It will be interesting to see if the Carolina Panthers make any other adjustments to their offseason routine. There are certainly going to be some changes that need to be made before the season opener, but those will shift into greater focus once we get a better idea of the talent the Carolina Panthers have on the roster. As for now, this is certainly a move away from what has been done in the past, but it is a change I can get behind.