[vc_row no_margin=”true”][vc_column width=”1/1″][gap size=”.313em”]
Less than a month before the start of a new season, the Carolina Panthers suffered what could be their biggest loss of 2015.
When receiver Kelvin Benjamin was carted off the field Wednesday morning, he left behind a major void. While the Panthers improved the depth in their receiving corps this offseason, no one on the roster can do what the 6-foot-5 Benjamin does.
“Kelvin Benjamin is the number one receiver. He’s the number one go-to-guy on the offense, so to lose a guy like that in any offense or scheme is going to be big,” cornerback Josh Norman said.
With Benjamin ruled out for the season, 10 receivers remain on the roster:
Look down the list and you see guys like Bersin and Boykin, who “did some nice things” Wednesday. Then there’s Corey Brown and Ginn, who provide speed but not the numbers of a No. 1 wideout.
Sure, Ginn posted the most productive season of his career in 2013, catching a career-high five touchdowns from Cam Newton. But in Arizona last year, he caught just 14 passes before he was released. For what it’s worth, Ginn has been the most exciting player in camp outside of Benjamin and Newton, shining in matchups against Norman.
Funchess, Carolina’s second-round pick, could grow into a No. 1 role one day, but he’s far from the dominant player Benjamin was as a rookie this time last year.
“Funchess is coming up, and we just need to get on him, as a leader in the room and tell him how big his role can be now,” Ginn said.
“Not having your number one guy in practice can hurt you a little bit, but I believe that we have the guys behind him that can step up and take whatever we need to do to fill this void.”
That void is what Benjamin did in 2014:
While the Panthers can search for free agent help, as you’d expect this time of year, there’s not much dazzling talent on the market. The most notable names are aging veterans Reggie Wayne, Santana Moss and Wes Welker, who are all past their prime and not nearly as physical as Benjamin.
Available free agent receivers, via Spotrac
So there’s no savior on the street. The only player who can fill the void left by Benjamin is Benjamin.
It’s a situation where the NFL cliché “no one is coming to save us” fits perfectly. The best case scenario now is for the current wideouts to pick up as much of the offensive production as possible.
“This is the NFL. We’re in a league where if a man goes down, a man has to step up,” Ginn said.
“We just have to go out and play. That’s all we can do. I believe we have the guys in the room that can catch the balls and get open and pick up some of the slack that we’ll have to pick up.”[line][vc_raw_html]
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
[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row]