After another intense padded practice on Monday, veteran safety Nick Scott offered an encouraging assessment of the Carolina Panthers' progress, making it clear that this team is not shying away from the physical edge that head coach Dave Canales wants them to develop.
“I feel like day in and day out we bring it, and that’s what you want… we’re having a lot of fun, guys are progressing, we’re getting physical and we’re right where we want to be,” Scott said.
That statement carries a little more weight considering how the boiling point is being reached almost daily as training camp emotions begin to cross the line on occasion.
Carolina Panthers are pushing themselves to the limit at training camp, and that's a good thing
Tempers flared after cornerback Mike Jackson Sr. laid a hard hit on running back Jonathon Brooks. Quarterback Bryce Young took exception. Not to that specific hit, but to a run of contact he felt had gone too far.
Veteran center Luke Fortner jumped in behind his quarterback, and things escalated from there before cooler heads, such as Scott, sorted it out.
Canales wasn't bothered by the flare-up at all. In fact, he called it a byproduct of a team that's finally competing at the level he wants.
"We had a little bit of a scuffle out there, and the response afterwards was more physicality, and that's exactly where we should be," Canales said. "We got to play on that tiptoe, that line, wearing pads."
The Panthers host the Buffalo Bills in their second preseason game this weekend. Starters are expected to see the field after sitting out during the Pro Football Hall of Fame game against the Arizona Cardinals. Of course, the Chicago Bears wait in Carolina's regular-season opener at Bank of America Stadium.
Carolina needs its physicality without needing the trainer's room. Obviously easier said than done, but that’s the recipe for success.
Now, not everyone would frame the fights as a good sign.
A skeptic could argue that repeated scuffles, even ones that get "talked through," are still a symptom of a coaching staff pushing too hard too early. The training camp injuries to second-year edge rusher Nic Scourton and rookie third-round wide receiver Chris Brazzell II are already a sign to take it a little easier for this group.
Scott's read on this team lines up with what the record already suggests: This is a roster with real expectations for the first time in years. And the players are pushing things right to the limit and sometimes beyond to achieve their goals.
The truth is that if the intensity and togetherness they've shown in camp can carry over to Sundays, Scott may be right. The Panthers could be exactly where they want to be.
Add us as a preferred source on Google