Panthers observations: Rookie WR gets tested and continues evolving, Dabo visits

New York Times

19 hours ago

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Carolina Panthers' first day in pads began with a Dabo Swinney sighting and ended with the first fight of camp.
In between, there were impressive displays of touch passing by Bryce Young, route running by Hunter Renfrow and ball tracking by Tetairoa McMillan. The Panthers packed a lot into an hour and 45 minutes, and we'll get to all the particulars.
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But speaking broadly, it was a good day for Young and the offense, which was on point after a couple of so-so showings in shorts and helmets during the first week of camp.
'We want to win every day just like the defense wants to win every day. Yeah, I think we had a better day today,' Young said after Monday's practice. 'They had some better days earlier on in camp. It's camp. It's back and forth.'
It was enough to impress Swinney, the Clemson coach who spent his last day before the start of Tigers' camp watching Renfrow, the former Clemson standout who missed all of last season while dealing with ulcerative colitis.
'They've got a good core,' Swinney said of the Panthers. 'This is a good group and the way Bryce finished last year is exciting. They've got a lot to be excited about here.'
Time to dive into some of the more exciting plays and developments from Monday:
Some teams used to start the first full-padded practice with the Oklahoma drill before the NFL banned the high-intensity, big-contact exercise six years ago. So the first meaningful mano-a-mano moment for the Panthers arrived with one-on-one drills, with receivers paired against cornerbacks and nickelbacks.
One of the first matchups was veteran corner Mike Jackson against McMillan, the No. 8 pick from Arizona. One of the questions about McMillan was how the slender, 6-5 wideout would handle press coverage from a physical corner like Jackson. And when Jackson got his hands on McMillan on their first rep, both McMillan and the ball ended up on the ground.
Jackson has matched up with McMillan a lot early in camp. Panthers coach Dave Canales said that's not by accident.
'Mike wants to go good on good all the time. I love that. The thing I tell the guys is we make us, and the guy across from you will determine how far you go and your readiness for games,' Canales said. 'I love the competitive nature of Mike. He's like, 'I'm going against him. I want to battle against this guy. I want to work on my game.' '
A couple minutes later, Jackson again lined up opposite McMillan, who got a free outside release on a go route down the sideline. Jackson was right on his hip and swiped at McMillan's hands just as Young's perfectly placed pass arrived. Looking over his shoulder, McMillan secured the ball with a nice hands catch while going to the ground on what was the play of the day.
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'That was a great job of him going and tracking the ball,' Young said. 'It was great coverage, and that's the league. There's gonna be a lot of great corners out there. It's a lot of contested catches. It was a great job by T-Mac of understanding leverage, fighting pressure with pressure, fading off at the last moment.'
Canales was pleased to see McMillan's response after the first matchup. 'The D-backs are challenging him every single time. And he's inviting that,' he said. 'Tough one-on-one rep to start, comes back and catches the deep go ball. To see him just stay even, processing what happened and just continuing to evolve each practice has been really cool.'
Great hands catch by Tetairoa McMillan on a Bryce Young throw. Pretty good coverage by Mike Jackson. pic.twitter.com/A0wdeI2AnO
— Joe Person (@josephperson) July 28, 2025
Renfrow also looked good during one-on-ones, putting nickel Chau Smith-Wade in a blender with a stop-and-start route that forced Smith-Wade to hold Renfrow, who still made the catch. Renfrow won with a similar route on his first rep, a performance that didn't surprise Swinney.
'There's route runners and then there's craftsmen, and he's a craftsman,' Swinney said.
Swinney said Renfrow understands leverage, knows how to set receivers up and has elite change of direction. 'I know he doesn't look the part,' Swinney said of the 5-10, 185-pounder. 'But (when) he puts a helmet on he turns into Superman.'
When a reporter later told Young what Swinney said about Renfrow looking like a normal guy before putting the pads on, Young didn't miss a beat.
'I don't think I'm at liberty to say what a normal person looks like,' the 5-foot-10 quarterback deadpanned, drawing laughs from media members.
Young usually plays things pretty straight with the media. But it was good to see him let his guard down and deliver the line of the day.
Normal guy. pic.twitter.com/w7UQNkUgDw
— Joe Person (@josephperson) July 28, 2025
New punter Sam Martin was at practice after missing the first three days with a hamstring issue. But equipment personnel still used the JUGS machine to mimic punts during a special teams period. More interesting is that Renfrow joined Raheem Blackshear deep to field punts for the first time during camp.
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Renfrow and David Moore, another veteran, look to be competing for the last one or two receiving spots on the roster. Moore was the 'safe' returner last season when the Panthers just needed a sure-handed player to catch a punt cleanly. Renfrow had extensive return experience with the Raiders, averaging 9.7 yards on 70 career punt returns.
'He's been a punt returner in his past. He's got a great feel for it,' Canales said. 'So like, what more can he do?'
It was hot again Monday in Charlotte, with highs in the 90s. But the temperatures didn't cause tempers to flare. Instead, it was linebacker Trevin Wallace's hit on Chuba Hubbard that raised the running back's ire. When Young shot a swing pass to Hubbard late in team period, Wallace arrived with the ball, collided with Hubbard and knocked him to the ground.
Hubbard rushed to his feet and swung at Wallace, appearing to connect with his facemask. Cornerback Jaycee Horn steered Wallace away from the scrum and there were no additional scrums. Having had time to cool off after his usual, post-practice hands work, Hubbard said he had no hard feelings toward Wallace.
'Football's all about emotions. Obviously, I got hit, reacted a certain way. But he's playing hard and I can't be mad about that,' Hubbard said.
Canales, who wants his team to be more physical this year, wasn't mad about it, either. 'We've gotta toe the line. We've gotta play physical. And a lot of times it's not personal, it's just football,' he said. 'Guys will respond passionately. They don't like getting knocked on their butt. They take it personal. But there was a lot of physical play throughout practice, so that's gonna happen.'
Chuba Hubbard on the Trevin Wallace play: 'Football is all about emotion.' pic.twitter.com/DItmBIbpZN
— Joe Person (@josephperson) July 28, 2025
• The kicking competition couldn't be more even — at least statistically — through four practices. When rookie Ryan Fitzgerald went 3-for-5 on the skinny goal posts, it meant that he and Matthew Wright were both 7-for-10 on field goals during camp.
• Ja'Tavion Sanders, the No. 1 tight end with Tommy Tremble out, was shaken up late in practice but appeared to be OK. Sanders was yet another offensive playmaker who had a strong day. 'The last couple of days didn't get a lot of targets, but he's winning,' Canales said. 'He looks fast, looks explosive.'
(Photo of Tetairoa McMillian: Scott Kinser / Imagn Images)