Black and Blue Review
Rookie RB Gaffney Lost for Season
T he NFL is the ultimate sport of attrition. Not only do the most successful teams have to get through 16 games relatively healthy, they also need to avoid injury bugs that often spread through the preseason.
Just two days into training camp, the Panthers are facing their first-mini health crisis at running back. Not only did they start camp without Jonathan Stewart, but now they’ve lost rookie Tyler Gaffney after just one practice.
After injuring his left knee Friday night, the sixth-round pick will have surgery this week. The Panthers will stash him on injured reserve, ending his season.
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OBSERVATIONS
- QB Cam Newton seemed to move ok on his ankle. His timing with receivers was off again, an issue that will likely last through at least training camp.
- RB Tyler Gaffney, done for the year after injuring his knee Friday night, isn’t a catastrophic loss for the Panthers. He was way down the line for touches this year, but it’s obviously a huge bummer for Gaffney. He said he had never injured his knee before, and he’s actually been relatively healthy while playing two sports most of his life. It’s actually terrible luck that a guy who was a workhorse at Stanford — he had school-record 45!!! carries against Oregon last year — suffered a season-ending injury during his first play of his first training camp.
- RB Kenjon Barner helped field punts after CB Antoine Cason and WR Philly Brown each bobbled an attempt.
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PLAYERS OF THE DAY
OFFENSE
WR Kealoha Pilares: Caught a touchdown pass on the first play of team drills, and later made an impressive sliding catch in the middle of the field.
DEFENSE
CB Carrington Byndom: He struggled in offseason workouts, and gave up a handful of receptions Saturday, but he also made a handful of good plays, including a pick-6 of quarterback Cam Newton.
QUOTES TO NOTE
“I thought defensively we made a few more plays than the offense. That was great and disappointing at the same time because the offense had a couple opportunities to throw the ball deep and we missed those.”
On dealing with yet another injury after it appeared he was finally healthy
“I don’t really believe in luck. I just believe that you’re given a hand of cards and it’s up to you to make the best next move. With the last couple of years, battling injuries and whatnot, it’s just something I had to go through. It’s made me who I am now.”
The 32-year-old, on his 11th season
“I feel comfortable being the old guy. It’s crazy how it’s worked out for me. Even in my third year I was considered the old guy. So I feel comfortable with it and helping the guys in any way I can to get better.”
On outside criticism of the remade receiving corps
“I mean, to be understanding, you had four guys leave. You had probably the best player to play in the organization leave. So those questions are going to naturally come up. I understand it from that viewpoint. You don’t know much about the guys coming in. I’m understanding.”
The native of Alabama, and a Crimson Tide fan, on watching Cam Newton with Auburn in 2010
“Just watching him and the way he led that team to a championship that year, I just knew there was something special about him. When I met him I got to see that.”
“I didn’t try to do that. I just tried to protect myself, and then I forced my arm out a little bit. He knows that. I went back and told him, ‘Man, I didn’t try to do that.’ I never try to do my teammates like that.”
“I try not to think about it.” (laughs)
“It’s nice to get away from everything. Get away from the city, get away from the people and kind of have this be our time. You make relationships with guys that you’ll remember for the rest of your life.”
PHOTOS
Two hours before first Spartanburg practice. http://t.co/KrTM9YqEYc
— Black & Blue Review (@BlackBlueReview) July 26, 2014
LIVE FEED REPLAY
CAMPING WITH THE NFC SOUTH
- New signing Pat Angerer reveals that when he had microfracture surgery last December, doctors gave him “about 50-50 (chance to recover), but more like 20 percent chance of coming back (with) the way my knee was.” — AJC
- Head coach Mike Smith talks about what to expect at training camp, including updates on defensive back battles, and “Hard Knocks” cameras. — AJC
- Andrew Brandt discusses how Roddy White’s new contract helps the Falcons prepare to give Julio Jones a big deal. — SI.com
- Wide recei…err sorry, tight end Jimmy Graham admits to going through some hard times this offseason. He credits former teammate Jonathan Vilma with helping him get through it. — WWL
- In bad news for the rest of the NFC, quarterback Drew Brees says he plans on playing until he is 45. It doesn’t seem too far-fetched. Just look at what Peyton Manning is doing at age 38 after surgery on his spine. — SI.com
- The biggest news Friday was that the rest of the NFC South finally started their respective training camps. The second-biggest news was the Bucs let go of guard Carl Nicks, a highly-prized free agent back in 2012. — ESPN.com
- Had the Nicks story come out earlier yesterday, perhaps this list of key position battles for all the NFC teams would have been altered. — NFL.com
- Safety Dashon Goldston talks about his recovery from his foot surgery and the Bucs’ new defense. — Sports Talk Florida
- The ‘Pewter Panel’ gives its predictions for how the division will play out. Spoiler alert: all are down on the Panthers. — Buccaneers.com