The Carolina Panthers are treating this week like the last real checkpoint before Week 1, and that means a lot of caution, a lot of managing, and not much interest in pushing anyone who doesn’t need to be pushed.
Coach Dave Canales said Monday that the starters are set to handle a heavy workload in Wednesday’s joint practice with the Houston Texans, but they probably won’t see the field Friday when the Panthers close out the preseason at home. Carolina is shifting its focus toward the regular-season opener Sept. 13 against Chicago, and the plan reflects that.
“We have a really intense practice plan with the Texans on Wednesday,” Canales said. “So depending on how we come out of that, if we get the volume that we’re looking for, the odds are they (the starters) won’t play…. We’re going to kind of make that decision after the practice.”
That approach fits the updates Canales gave on several key players Monday after a full-pads practice in Charlotte. Wideout Xavier Legette is dealing with a sore foot and will stay in a walking boot through Thursday. Canales said the team will remove the boot after that and begin ramping him up over the weekend so he can be ready for practice next week.
“His foot is still sore,” the coach said, “and we’re going to have him in a boot until Thursday. We’ll take that off and then we’ll ramp him up over the weekend to get him ready for practice (next week).”
Legette is currently the Panthers’ No. 3 receiver. If he’s not available for Week 1, David Moore or Brycen Tremayne would likely step into that role.
At running back, Chuba Hubbard is also being held back, though Canales sounded optimistic. Hubbard has been out with a mild hamstring injury, and Jonathon Brooks has taken the first-team reps over the last couple of weeks. Brooks also scored his first NFL touchdown of any kind Friday.
Canales said Hubbard is “expected to be ready for Week 1” and noted that he has already reached over 20 miles an hour in return-to-play work. Still, the Panthers aren’t rushing him.
“He’s ahead of schedule,” Canales said.
Hubbard sounded just as encouraged after practice.
“To be honest, I feel pretty good. I think the coaches and obviously the training staff are just trying to take care of me….
I think it’s just they’re kind of protecting me from myself a little bit. I would have been out there the next day if I could have.”
If Hubbard is cleared for the Bears game, Canales said Carolina would use a committee at running back, with Hubbard and Brooks alternating series and also rotating in on third down.
“We’ll definitely roll it out just the way we have been, where you’ll have a lead back for the series,” the coach said. “The other guy comes in on third down, so they can be in there for the protection - and also we run the ball on third down.”
Darren Waller, the veteran tight end signed only last week, also remains on a slow track. He practiced Monday, but Canales said he “probably” won’t play Friday as he continues learning the playbook and offensive terminology.
“We sprinkled him in,” Canales said. “...
He looked good running. He’s in great shape.”
There was also a rest day for Devin Lloyd, the Panthers’ new inside linebacker, who was recently ranked No. 27 on the NFL’s annual Top 100 player list. Canales said Lloyd was sore after last week’s practice against Jacksonville and received more intensive treatment on his knee Monday.
“Devin was really sore coming out of the practice (vs. Jacksonville last week),” Canales said.
“He really had a fantastic day. We were going to play him, but coming out of that didn’t feel like we wanted to.
And then today he got some more intensive treatment on his knee. He’s doing great.
We don’t foresee this being something that’s going to hinder him long-term.”
Rookie quarterback Haynes King is also out of the mix for this week. King hasn’t played since his 5-yard scramble on the final play of the Hall of Fame exhibition game Aug. 6, and he won’t be available against Houston either. That leaves Kenny Pickett to handle the first half and Kyle Trask to take over sometime after that.
“He’s trending in the same direction as Chuba,” Canales said of King. “He’s getting his long speed and all that stuff up, but he’s not in a place where we can cut him loose to play football right now.”
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