How a rookie lineman played a unique role in Panthers’ win against Broncos
Sam Darnold wasn’t the only Carolina Panthers player to make his first start of the season against the Denver Broncos.
While Darnold received the huge spotlight for his big return in the 23-10 win at Bank of America Stadium on Sunday, a lesser-known cog — rookie lineman Cade Mays — experienced the joy of being a starter as well.
Mays, a sixth-round pick, is known for his versatility. The Tennessee alum can play five offensive line positions. But against the Broncos, his role was that of a fullback.
Filling in for an injured Giovanni Ricci (neck), Mays took the first offensive snap of the game. On the play, Mays was positioned in the middle of an I-formation between Darnold and running back D’Onta Foreman.
Despite the run set, the Panthers worked a passing play, which led to a 15-yard completion between Darnold and tight end Ian Thomas.
That successful call was the first of Mays’ six snaps at fullback. Five of those plays went for positive yardage, and the other — run stuff at the line — was negated by a holding penalty.
“Just seeing him be able to get through and find the right guy, and get on him and lock on him — it is different because you’ve got space in between this guy now,” Foreman said. “He’s got a chance to move and whatever, so I enjoyed it.”
Mays, at 6-foot-6 and 325 pounds, is much bigger and bulkier than the average fullback. For instance, Ricci — a fullback/tight end hybrid player — is listed as 6-foot-3 and 240 pounds.
But with Ricci sidelined, offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo and his staff needed to be creative to bounce back from the blunders of last week’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
“With Gio being out this week, I commend the offensive coaches for trying to get creative and still find a way to utilize what we do within our system,” said Steve Wilks, the Panthers’ interim head coach.. “I’m proud of Mays. As I told him at the end of the game on the sideline, I thought he stepped up this week and performed well.”
While the Panthers lost 10 yards on the holding penalty from left guard Brady Christensen in the first quarter, Mays’ five other plays accounted for 39 of Carolina’s 349 net yards against Denver.
Mays and veteran swing tackle Cam Erving rotated in and out of the lineup against the Broncos, with Erving serving in his usual role as a blocking tight end. Erving has been working as an extra blocker for weeks, but seeing Mays get his shot at fullback brought a smile to his face.
“He’s decisive, he’s physical — he did really well,” Erving said. “He got a start today! He got his first start in the NFL, which I’m very happy for and proud of him, man. Because the kid does everything the right way. He works hard. … It was just nice to be able to see him go out there and have success.”
Mays and Erving helped the Panthers close out the game in the fourth quarter. With a two-score lead, Carolina’s offense returned to the field with 2:55 remaining in the game.
Mays helped the Panthers pick up 13 total yards on the drive to keep Carolina in charge of the clock.
“Cade did a really good job out there for us when he got his number called, especially in that four-minute period, when we had to run the ball,” Darnold said. “The defense knew that we were going to run the ball and we were going to try to run the clock out.”
Mays had played just one offensive snap in the previous 11 games of the season. He has mostly worked as a backup right tackle, guard and center in practice with the scout team.
This week, though, he had a two-pronged role in practice that earned him even more respect from his veteran teammates.
“I thought it was awesome,” center Bradley Bozeman said. “I was so happy for him to get the start — it’s always great. Being that young guy, just working your butt off each and every day and doing the right things — swinging both the first-team reps and the scout-team reps, it’s a tough task. You can hit that rookie wall really quickly, but he’s just done a really good job of staying consistent, staying in there — he got thrown some bones. It’s great to see us have success with that stuff.”
Mays has won over his teammates and coaches with his work ethic, and according to Erving, his errand-running skills for the position room. But as he enters the home stretch of his rookie season, his work at fullback could lead to some bigger opportunities in the future.
With the starting offensive line — outside of Bozeman — signed to long-term deals, Mays has to find creative ways to get onto the field. Being a part-time fullback isn’t a shabby gig as he awaits his opportunities in the trenches.
“He’s been just so dedicated to his craft,” right guard Austin Corbett said. “Obviously, playing fullback, it’s something different, right? From what I know, he’s done it in college. It’s not foreign to him. He just gets in there and gets it done. That’s exactly what you want.”
