Which Carolina Panthers news stories are hitting the headlines as preparations gather pace for Monday's pivotal clash against the New Orleans Saints?
It was another busy day for the Carolina Panthers, who made a couple of transactions and found out the inevitable regarding one of their top performers. But for the coaching staff and those healthy to participate, it's time to get back down to business in readiness for their crucial Week 2 game against the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football.
Until then, the stories causing debate include Jaycee Horn's bitter blow, Frank Reich focusing on the positives, where the Panthers stand in ESPN's power rankings, and an intriguing addition to the practice squad.
Let's delve into each topic in more detail.
Carolina Panthers sign Tarik Cohen
The Carolina Panthers were crying out for explosiveness on offense during their disappointing loss at the Atlanta Falcons. After that didn't arrive, general manager Scott Fitterer took matters into his own hands by signing Tarik Cohen to the team's practice squad following a successful visit.
Cohen's endured some horrific luck on the injury front over the past few years. Before then, he was an All-Pro kick returner and exceptional pass-catchng option out of the backfield for the Chicago Bears.
While Cohen is still only 28 years old, he hasn't played a down since the 2019 season and might take some time to get himself back into genuine football shape. All signs point to the player being healthy, so it's not cost the Panthers much to find out if he still has something left to give.
If Cohen can get back to anything like the force of old, he's a significant upgrade on anything Carolina boasts in the return game currently. The Panthers also signed cornerback Lamar Jackson to their practice squad as extra insurance.
Carolina Panthers slump in ESPN's power rankings
After an offseason full of hope and expectation, the Carolina Panthers got a reality check at the Atlanta Falcons in Week 1. Mustering 10 points on the road against divisional rials wasn't exactly the best way to begin what's supposed to be a prosperous new era, so there is a lot of hard work ahead for Frank Reich and his staff in pursuit of improvements.
This highly disappointing effort was reflected in ESPN's power rankings. After sitting at No. 22 in the preseason, Carolina dropped dramatically to No. 28, although beat writer David Newton highlighted the positive debut of tight end Hayden Hurst as a reason for optimism moving forward.
"Coach Frank Reich said the tight end was going to play a big role in his offense, and Hurst showed that even on a down day for rookie quarterback Bryce Young. He led the team in catches, targets and receiving yards. He and Young connected for Carolina's only touchdown of the day. Hurst's only real mistake was throwing Young's first touchdown ball into the stands."David Newton, ESPN
This is probably a fair reflection of how things unfolded for the Panthers during their first game of the 2023 season. But there are a lot of new moving parts that need to mesh, so things should progress positively as the campaign evolves.
However, Reich cannot afford to go 0-2 against NFC South opposition if he genuinely harbors playoff hopes.
Carolina Panthers HC Frank Reich focusing on the positives
Reflecting on such a poor performance is never easy for any coaching staff. But for Frank Reich, it's about removing the emotion out of their thought process and trusting the tape in the hope of making improvements.
There have been a number of overreactions to Sunday's reverse and questions are also being asked about recruitment in certain position groups. Again, this is a work in progress, but it's evident the Carolina Panthers have a passionate fanbase impatient for success after years of languishing in the proverbial football wilderness.
Reich was eager to focus on the positives when speaking to the media via Sports Illustrated for the most part. However, the head coach emphasized the dire need for more explosiveness on offense to take the next step forward.
"Positives were, ran the ball well. Thought the o-line played well, thought they protected well. We had some pressure later in the game when we got in that pass mode they ran a couple stunts. But I thought for the most part the protection was good. I thought we were subpar in the pass game in general as far as chunk plays. We need more explosive plays. We had that 4th & 1 that we get stopped on the first drive that really ends up being like a turnover. We had three turnovers. Really, it turns out to be four turnovers which is a negative but in some ways that's a positive. We're in that game. We're leading that game in the third quarter with those turnovers, so that's a double-edged sword. We've got to eliminate those turnovers."Frank Reich via Sports Illustrated
Protecting the football and opening things up from a schematic standpoint is absolutely essential in Week 2 against the New Orleans Saints. Anything less would lead to serious concerns being raised just two games into the campaign.
Carolina Panthers CB Jaycee Horn's blow
Things didn't look good for Jaycee Horn when he suffered a non-contract injury that saw him leave the field in Week 1 at the Atlanta Falcons. Considering the health complications suffered by the gifted cornerback throughout his professional career to date, this is nothing short of disastrous for the player and the Carolina Panthers.
It was later revealed that Horn was dealing with a hamstring issue and awaiting further tests. So it came as no surprise to see Jeremy Fowler of ESPN confirm that the former first-round selection will miss multiple weeks as a result.
This leaves the Panthers without their best coverage presence by a considerable margin. They are also desperately thin at the position after treating urgency within this group with no urgency whatsoever throughout the offseason.
Carolina signed Lamar Jackson to the practice squad, but how much he can help remains to be seen. The Panthers look set to move forward with Donte Jackson, Troy Hill, and C.J. Henderson as their starting cornerback trio, with Jeremy Chinn occupying the big nickel role.
Ejiro Evero's defense was a bright spot overall on Sunday despite the loss. But with Horn out for a considerable period, the secondary is in real danger of becoming a weak link unless some significant adjustments arrive in the coming days.