4 Panthers players who shouldn’t play a snap vs. Saints
By Dean Jones
Trenton Cannon – Carolina Panthers RB
The contribution made by Mike Davis this season has been nothing short of extraordinary. Replacing star running back Christian McCaffrey was never going to be easy. But the primary backup is now over 1,000 yards from scrimmage after fighting his way through injury to achieve the feat at the Washington Football Team.
However, Davis is formally listed as doubtful for Sunday’s game against the Saints to end his season and possibly his time with the Carolina Panthers. The veteran is out of contract in the coming months and is sure to command plenty of interest on the free-agent market thanks to his sterling efforts in McCaffrey’s absence this year.
If this prices the Panthers out of keeping Davis around, then the need for a primary backup this offseason is paramount.
This makes it all the more essential for the Panthers to see what they’ve got with Rodney Smith, the undrafted free-agent signing out of Minnesota who has flashed some brilliance during limited reps since the bye week.
Trenton Cannon is also in line to see more in the way of involvement, which wouldn’t be the smartest thing in the world from Carolina’s perspective. Smith needs to shoulder most of the workload so the coaching staff can determine whether or not he can be counted upon if Davis walks in free agency. So it wouldn’t be wise to allocate some touches in the former Virginia State star’s direction.