16 observations from Thursday’s Carolina Panthers training camp practice

Observations from Thursday’s Carolina Panthers training camp practice at Wofford College:

▪  Cam Newton’s first attempt of a long pass during camp was complete to Greg Olsen for a touchdown, beating cornerback Daryl Worley. Newton celebrated accordingly.

▪  Amini Silatolu, drafted as a guard, was working at left tackle behind Matt Kalil with the second group.

▪  After starting with a nice floater to Russell Shepard, Newton’s timing was off during his first series of practice, including a near-interception by linebacker Shaq Thompson.

▪  Ron Rivera agreed that Newton’s timing was a little off early, but said it was good to see him uncork the long throw near the end of practice.

▪  Kalil did a nice job handling Mario Addison spin move during one-on-ones, which is impressive because that move is nasty.

▪  Defensive end Charles Johnson, who has been limited so far in camp, got past right tackle Daryl Williams in one-on-ones.

▪  It appears Joe Webb is now Joe Webb III, but what hasn’t changed is how hard he works on special teams.

▪  It was 89 and muggy at the start of practice in Spartanburg, but Olsen had a knit cap on. Because of course he does.

▪  Wide receivers Shepard, Fred Ross and Austin Duke stayed late for extra work. Cornerback Zack Sanchez put in extra time on the dummy as well.

▪  Rookie running back Christian McCaffrey had a rare bobble and drop, helped along by tight coverage from linebacker Thomas Davis.

▪  McCaffrey’s cuts are still foolin' folks, even though there’s no live tackling yet. He creates so much space that live tacklers might not make a difference.

▪  Rookie receiver/running back Curtis Samuel juked veteran safety Mike Adams pretty hard to get around the outside in team drills.

▪  Center Ryan Kalil, coming off shoulder surgery, was banging in gap drills with the first- and second-team line. Good sign for that shoulder.

▪  Cornerback James Bradberry had his second straight good day of practice. Coach Ron Rivera said Bradberry is "on the verge" of being a very good player.

▪  The post-practice screams from fans wanting autographs have a familiar No. 1 and No. 2 in sheer decibel level in Newton and Luke Kuechly, respectively. Rookie running back Christian McCaffrey has vaulted to No. 3 on that list, however.

▪  Devin Funchess took a ball away from Daryl Worley on a corner route. Funchess achieved little separation on the play – that's been an ongoing issue – but his hands were strong enough to make the catch under pressure.

This story was originally published July 27, 2017 at 6:37 PM with the headline "16 observations from Thursday’s Carolina Panthers training camp practice."