FIRST-TEAM DEFENSE

DE – Charles Johnson, Greg Hardy
DT – Colin Cole, Star Lotulelei
LB – Thomas Davis, Luke Kuechly, Chase Blackburn
CB – Antoine Cason, Melvin White
S – Thomas DeCoud, Roman Harper

Defensive Line: Second-round pick Kony Ealy was the first guy in. Greg Hardy was the last. Not many players wear headphones up the path to the practice field, but Hardy had a pair on. He took them off before he went in and spent a good part of the session by himself. He talked to Jonathan Stewart while stretching and with Charles Johnson on the side, but Hardy certainly appeared subdued. He declined to talk to reporters afterward, saying he had to go lift. Colin Cole worked with the first team ahead of Dwan Edwards.

Linebackers: Luke Kuechly has a personality he kept hidden his first two seasons. He may be starting to feel more comfortable letting it show. Not sure if it was to mess with the media, but the Defensive Player of the Year played switcheroo with his fellow linebackers. Kuechly walked into practice wearing Chase Blackburn’s jersey. Blackburn had on A.J. Klein’s. Klein was in Kuechly’s. Got it? When they returned to their normal numbers, Kuechly spent a ton of time talking with younger guys on the side. Many are wondering if Klein will take over Blackburn’s starting job, but in this defense, the importance of the weakside linebacker is limited. Ben Jacobs had an interception during team drills.

Cornerbacks: Antoine Cason will have a starting job unless he loses it. Some think that’s possible. If he struggles, it will be interesting to see how loyal his former coaches (Ron Rivera, Steve Wilks) remain. Cason joined receivers Philly Brown and De’Andre Presley on punt return. The usually mild-mannered James Dockery got into a brief scuffle with first-round receiver Kelvin Benjamin. Josh Thomas was burned by undrafted rookie Brown. Josh Norman missed the day with a dental appointment. Nickel back will be a fascinating battle through camp. Charles Godfrey was limited coming off a torn Achilles, but he did more than just sit off to the side. He worked a bit with the ones at nickel and he appeared to go at full speed a few times. Fifth-round pick Bene Benwikere, who’s competing with Godfrey, made general manager Dave Gettleman look prophetic. Gettleman said during rookie minicamp that Benwikere has the instincts of “an interceptor.” Benwikere grabbed a pick and knocked away a pass on consecutive plays.

Safeties: Former Saints safety Roman Harper looked odd in Captain Munnerlyn’s old number. Thomas DeCoud is tall. How tall? 6-2, but a quick story: A reporter jokingly speculated before practice that Hardy may walk in wearing a different jersey so the media wouldn’t notice him. When DeCoud passed by, we wondered for a few seconds if it could have been Hardy. The defensive end is three inches taller and obviously wider, but DeCoud’s size is something the Panthers haven’t had in a safety in quite a while. Fourth-round pick Tre Boston appeared to ask a number of questions to coaches and DeCoud.