Wandering through the Carolina Panthers' locker room Wednesday, you couldn't help but notice the repetition of a theme: Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan doesn't play like a rookie, according to a half-dozen Panthers players.
Which is interesting, since Ryan, who will start for the Falcons against Carolina on Sunday in Charlotte, is indeed a rookie. And earlier in the day, Atlanta coach Mike Smith had pointed out that the transition from college quarterback to pro quarterback was the most difficult adjustment in the sport.
Still, Carolina quarterback Jake Delhomme, who has often talked of the difficulty he had in adjusting to the NFL, isn't surprised at Ryan's success.
“No, because I think he ran a pro-type version offense at Boston College,” Delhomme said of Ryan, who has led the Falcons to a 2-1 start. “I know his last head coach (had been) offensive coordinator at Green Bay, Jeff Jagodzinski.
Delhomme pointed out that current Falcons offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey knew Jagodzinski.
“He probably had a pretty good basis coming in,” Delhomme said. “This kid's a winner; I watched him a lot in college. I followed him a good bit. I just liked the way he threw. I just thought he was a winner and he's done some great things.
“Some guys are ready; some aren't. Obviously so far, he's been ready.”
Otah's getting NFL education
Carolina rookie right offensive tackle Jeff Otah is learning on the job, and another tough lesson awaits Sunday – Atlanta has talented defensive end John Abraham. While Abraham moves around a good bit, Otah is certain to face him a number of times.
Otah said that in college he had heard that all the NFL defensive lines were good. Now he's learning it first-hand.
“You've got to come in and put in that work every weekend,” he said. “Concentrate and study a guy hard every week. It's just a grind, but that's what you get paid for.”
As for Abraham, Otah said, “He's very quick and athletic; he's smart, he'll take what you give him. He's going real good right now, and the team's going real good. It's our job to prepare for him so we can contain him.
“You've always got to be concerned going against anybody. Even if it's the last guy on the depth chart; he's good too.”
Beason off to strong start
Three games into his second season, Panthers linebacker Jon Beason continues to improve. Beason leads the team in tackles with 34 (21 solo), according to team statistics. He also has a fumble recovery and a defended pass.
Fellow linebacker Thomas Davis, who is having an impact after shifting from the strong to weak side, has 28 tackles, followed by safety Chris Harris (19) and linebacker Na'il Diggs (17). Cornerback Chris Gamble and safety Charles Godfrey have 16 each.
Defensive end Julius Peppers has one of Carolina's five sacks and leads the team with five quarterback pressures.
By The Numbers
6 Number of sacks Abraham has this season.
5 Number of sacks Carolina has this season.
5 Number of sacks Abraham has in six games against the Panthers.
Injury Update
Offensive guard
Travelle Wharton, who missed the past two games with a knee injury, returned to practice on a limited basis Wednesday. Davis (ankle), offensive tackle
Jordan Gross (ankle) and receiver
Ryne Robinson also had limited participation.
Not practicing were Diggs (shoulder), Harris (knee), defensive end Tyler Brayton (ankle) and defensive end Charles Johnson (thigh).
The Panthers added linebacker/special teams player
Donte Curry to the roster, replacing rookie
Dan Connor, who will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury.
Curry was cut last week to make room for Steve Smith, who had missed the first two games of the season because of suspension.
The Panthers also added linebacker
Casper Brinkley to their practice squad. Brinkley was among the team's first cuts in training camp and is a former South Carolina star. Receiver
Titus Ryan was cut to make room for Brinkley.
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