The Carolina Panthers and Buffalo Bills are going to be intertwined for years to come. Both head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane migrated north from Carolina this offseason and Buffalo may have even poached players from the Panthers in the 2017 NFL Draft. As we continue previewing the 2017 season, we went to Cat Scratch Reader, SB Nation’s Panthers blog, for more information on Carolina.
Editor’s note: this post was written before the Panthers fired general manager David Gettleman. - MRW
Carolina Panthers
Notable free agent additions: DE Julius Peppers, CB Captain Munnerlyn, OT Matt Kalil, S Mike Adams
Notable free agent departures: WR Ted Ginn, OT Mike Remmers, FB Mike Tolbert, DT Paul Soliai, LB AJ Klein
Draft picks expected to contribute as rookies: RB Christian McCaffrey, WR Curtis Samuel, OT Taylor Moton, DE Daeshon Hall.
While the Panthers continue to say veteran RB Jonathan Stewart will get the bulk of the work I think they will have a hard time not putting the ball in McCaffrey’s hands. We think he’s going to be electric as a rookie.
Biggest offseason addition: DE Julius Peppers: the Panthers’ all-time sack leader returns home. So far the fans have welcomed him back with open arms.
Biggest storyline heading into training camp: Cam Newton’s continued recovery from offseason shoulder surgery. He is expected to be ready for training camp but had only begin throwing recently.
Under-the-radar storyline heading into training camp: LB Shaq Thompson looks ready for a breakout season as the third All-Pro LB in the Panthers starting lineup.
Notable injuries heading into training camp: None beyond Newton’s rotator cuff.
Buffalo heads to Carolina in Week 2 for the Panthers’ home opener. Thanks to Cat Scratch Reader for their insight!