How Carolina Panthers safety Sam Franklin went from ‘a meme’ to the team record book
The first thing Sam Franklin Jr.’s father told his son on Sunday wasn’t “congratulations!” or “way to go!” or “that was unbelievable!”
It was a bit more ... fatherly.
You didn’t get tackled by a quarterback this time!
“That was the biggest reaction,” Franklin said on Monday of the postgame phone conversation he had with his dad, chuckling at the memory. “That was the first thing he said. ‘You didn’t let the same thing happen twice. You’re getting better.’ So that was good.”
To know what the Franklins were laughing about Sunday evening, you need to be acquainted with two plays:
The first came in the first preseason game of the season, against the Jets, when the 2020 undrafted free agent picked off reserve New York QB Tim Boyle but got tackled by Boyle on the return.
And the second made history. On third-and-goal from the 5 on the first possession of Sunday’s game, Minnesota quarterback Kirk Cousins threw a late pass across his body to the far sideline intended for KJ Osborn. Franklin jumped the route, intercepted the pass at the goal line and took off.
He scampered 99 yards, eclipsing 20.6 miles an hour in his wake (the fastest speed by any Panther recorded in a game so far this year, per ESPN). He slowed down around the 30-yard line to get a big block from rookie DB D’Shawn Jamison — who leveled Kirk Cousins — and then he was home free.
That 99-yard interception return for a touchdown was the longest return of the season in the NFL, and the longest in Panthers history. Julius Peppers held the previous record with a 97-yard non-scoring interception return in 2004.
The play on its own is impressive. But what made it more special for Franklin was that, in many ways, it was riddled in redemption.
Consider all the ways it was:
▪ The interception came a few plays after Franklin put the team in a precarious position with a defensive pass interference penalty. The Vikings’ first drive was expedited when Cousins lofted an underthrown pass in the direction of Franklin, who obstructed intended receiver Jordan Addison as he tried to come back for the ball.
▪ The big play also came a week after Franklin was made, in his words Monday, “a meme.” On a red zone rush from Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet, Franklin was trucked out of bounds. The internet then did its thing, putting the hit to music — and even, as one TikTok video showed, to Spongebob (?).
▪ Most consequential, however, was that Franklin’s interception came when his team absolutely needed him.
Franklin got his NFL chance with Matt Rhule, the coach he played for at Temple and, initially, with the Panthers. The Rhule holdover has mostly played in a reserve role this season but earned his first start at safety last week because veteran safety Xavier Woods is still shrugging off an injury. (Woods is one of several key defenders who have been sidelined, the first of whom was Jaycee Horn and the latest of whom was Donte Jackson, who exited the Vikings game and didn’t return in the second half with a shoulder injury.)
Sunday marked the most snaps Franklin has played all season. He took 47 snaps Sunday (98%), a big bulk of the 103 he’s played all year, per Pro Football Reference.
And everyone took notice of Franklin’s performance immediately — from his father to head coach Frank Reich.
“Even going back to preseason, whenever he’s in there, he just finds ways to make plays,” Reich said of Franklin postgame. He added, “That was a huge deal.”
Franklin said Monday that his individual emergence at the right time isn’t something he’s focused on. He, instead, is focused “on wins” and continuing to make plays for a secondary that has been largely a bright spot for the Panthers this year. The Panthers have only allowed 707 passing yards this season (Top 10 in the league) and have notched an interception in three straight games for the first time since Weeks 8-10 in 2021.
“Everybody just keep doing their jobs, the wins will happen by themselves,” Franklin said. “You don’t have to go out and make plays. We have enough time to just play our role and let the game come to us.”
That philosophy certainly worked Sunday.
This story was originally published October 3, 2023 at 6:30 AM.
