Fists, fade balls fly as Bryce Young, Terrace Marshall connect in Panthers-Jets practice
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young lifted a fade pass to the left corner of the end zone. Terrace Marshall, a much-maligned 2021 second-round pick, was smothered by New York Jets cornerback D.J. Reed as they entered pay dirt.
Marshall — listed as 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds — went up and grabbed the ball over Reed (5-9, 188 lbs.) and fell to the ground with the ball in his hands and the defensive back on top of him. Penalty flags flew as both players hit the ground, signifying a pass interference penalty on Reed, who clearly held Marshall for several strides into the end zone. No matter, though. The end result was a highlight-reel touchdown completion.
It was Marshall’s second fade-ball touchdown of the 11-on-11 period, and he was clearly feeling quite confident in his ability to defeat the Jets’ coverage. That newfound swagger led to Marshall tossing the ball at Reed in the end zone. Reed, naturally, took offense, and went after Marshall with the ball and then shoved the wideout before teammates surrounded both of them.
The sequence was the perfect encapsulation of Thursday’s joint practice — the final official workout of the Panthers’ training camp — in Uptown Charlotte. Young was accurate, Marshall was excellent, the Jets were grabby in the secondary, and the workout featured at least three scuffles of varying degrees.
Young loved that his connection with Marshall was alive and well, he said afterward.
“He had a great practice, did a great job, and it’s not surprising at all,” Young said of Marshall. “I don’t think he did anything out of character. I think he was just himself. He got some opportunities, made the most of them, that’s always what I see, what I expect with him out there. He did a great job. It was competitive out there, it was a back-and-forth environment, and he did a great job rising to that occasion, making the plays that we all know he can make. So it was great.”
This first dust-up (more on these later) was also a teaching moment for Marshall, head coach Dave Canales said. He acknowledged Marshall’s great plays Thursday but deemed the boastful flip to the defender afterward “bad football.”
“He and I talked about it out there, and we put it behind us,” Canales said. “But these are the moments. It’s too hard. Football is too hard, the margins are so tight in this league. You can’t afford to give the opponent anything — not the ball, not a penalty, not anything.”
Tracking Panthers offense vs. Jets defense
Young — coming off three consecutive practices with at least one interception — protected the ball well on Thursday against the Jets’ dynamic defense. Better yet, he was accurate and dynamic with the ball as a passer.
Young’s early highlights included the pair of pinpoint heaves to Marshall in the back of the end zone. The Panthers have squares in the corners of each end zone on the practice field, and Canales later acknowledged those squares are meant to help with the visualization and timing of fade balls to the corners.
“Up the field, to the outside hand, and give your guy a chance to make the play,” Canales said. “We’ve had a couple that went off the field, and never in the history (of the game) was a ball complete out of bounds. So let’s keep it on the field and let our big receivers make plays. We got a bunch of them. A bunch of guys with size and speed and strong hands. So I was so glad to see that show up today.”
Young has opened up his arsenal quite a bit this summer, and his fade ball attack is much improved. He has also thrown the ball quite well on the move, as he did during one highlight play where he evaded pressure, stepped up in the pocket and slung a laser across the middle to Marshall for a big completion. He also made a terrific toss of roughly 30 yards to wideout Johnathan Mingo on an out route that beat Reed to the sideline. It was one of Young’s best throws of camp, especially on a deep ball.
It wasn’t all perfect, though. Jets defensive lineman Tanzel Smart got pressure up the middle on a couple of plays, including one that would have been a clear sack in a game. Young was also forced to throw the ball away on a few occasions as well.
On the ground, the Panthers had mixed results. Chuba Hubbard left the practice early with an apparent knee injury, so Mike Boone — a major camp standout — got plenty of reps. He had an impressive 25-yard run for a touchdown where he cut back and zoomed forward untouched to the end zone. The Jets defense did get a few stops up front, though.
Brief but feisty intermission: Fists fly between Jets, Panthers
The scuffle between Marshall and Reed set the stage for what would end up being a rather chippy affair on the field.
A few minutes after the Marshall-Reed commotion, Jets defensive lineman Michael Clemons (6-5, 270 lbs.) caught Boone (5-10, 206 lbs.) on a short run to the right side of the line in 11-on-11 drills. Clemons held Boone up for a few seconds after the whistle blew the play dead. When Clemons finally let go of Boone, the running back pushed the lineman. Clemons responded with a swing at Boone’s facemask, which appeared to connect, even if just slightly. Boone, undeterred by the punch, got in his own swing that failed to connect. Both then exchanged one more round of fists before being separated.
“It’s dumb football,” Canales said, specifically when asked about Marshall’s instigation but speaking in generalities. “We can’t have that, guys fighting. We want to celebrate with each other. We want to make big plays and give the opponents nothing. This is the exact type of stuff I’ve been hitting them on, especially going into this practice. And (Marshall) got excited, made a great play on a really good player — leave it at that. It’s a great football play. How about we celebrate that?”
Jets head coach Robert Saleh, a longtime friend and former colleague of Canales, shared a similar view.
“It’s definitely going to draw a reaction, especially in practice, because you can be warned by the coach before practice but you definitely know (the consequences) are a little bit more serious in the game as far as a fine and getting kicked out of the game,” Saleh said. “But in practice, you’ve just got to try to control it. But, yeah, sometimes you can’t control those emotions. Obviously, you want to do your best to protect everybody, but in these types of practices you want to protect yourself and your teammates so it’s a thin line between doing the right thing and protecting yourself.”
As mentioned before, Hubbard went down during team drills. He slipped while trying to avoid a big hit by Jets safety Chuck Clark in the open field. However, Hubbard still collided with Clark and teammates from both sides emptied onto the field and faced off. There were no punches thrown before cooler heads prevailed.
The practice was so chippy that at one point veteran wideout-turned-tight end Jordan Matthews screamed at and seemingly taunted the Jets returners after a kickoff return stop. Matthews, who is generally soft-spoken, yelled and apparently boasted at the returners for quite a while, but there was no physicality.
Tracking the Carolina defense against Aaron Rodgers, Jets offense
The Panthers defense didn’t let the offense have all the fun. Against the Jets offense, led by household name Aaron Rodgers and playmakers Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson, the Panthers found ways to make splashes that sent the sold-out Charlotte crowd into regular roars.
The most memorable moments came in bunches.
The first: On the Jets’ second 11-on-11 series, with Rodgers dealing, the veteran quarterback fired a pass over the middle that hit off the hands of Allen Lazard, popped up and found the hands of safety Alex Cook, who took the interception to the house. (This is merely one of a bunch of big plays Cook — who led the team in tackles in the team’s first preseason game — has had this preseason.)
Later, a flurry of turnovers arrived. After a pair of passes of 20-plus yards — one to Wilson, who shook Lamar Jackson loose with a flag route; the other to an open Xavier Gipson, who found space on a scramble drill — the Jets settled in the red zone. From there, the Panthers defense punched loose the ball from Hall’s hands and recovered a fumble. The team also, not long after in the same goal-line situation, picked off Rodgers again — this one by third-round draft pick linebacker Trevin Wallace. (Wallace seemed to track Rodgers’ eyes “wonderfully” — as he’s described Panthers vet LB Josey Jewell do on occasion — and ran that back the other way, too.)
That’s three takeaways on the Jets first-team offense. Cornerback D’Shawn Jamison also had a pick in 7-on-7 drills against Jets third-string QB Andrew Peasley.
Jaycee Horn saw a lot of plays that made him smile Thursday. He practiced but didn’t play much because he was on a rep count, he said. He said he saw defensive players “attacking the ball” — punching the ball loose when the ball carrier has it — is something the coaching staff has drilled into the team.
“Coach Canales has been highlighting it in team meetings,” Horn said. “DBs run after the ball, and it shows that you’re punching at it. So we’ve created some turnovers the last week or two with it. Our coaches show us how many attacks we take on the ball per practice, and the more we take, the more we get the ball out.”
Causing turnovers has been a constant talking point this offseason. The lack of turnovers caused was the one blemish on an otherwise stalwart defensive unit last year; the team finished last in takeaways per game in 2023 despite being Top 5 in yards allowed.
“The things that our defensive coaching staff is doing to emphasize attempts on the ball (is great),” Canales said. “It’s like a batting average: the more attempts you have, the more opportunities you’re gonna get. Because it’s really small. The percentages are really low to get a fumble punched out. It is. So you just have to have more attempts. You have to have more attempts at the ball than numbers of plays. If we play a 65-play game, your attempts gotta be in the hundreds. It’s gotta be multiple guys trying to get it out to actually create just one or two.”
He added: “Interceptions come from guys playing their leverage, having great eyes, and doing their job, and coming up with the catch. You know, so huge emphasis. They’re doing a great job. They’re sick about it. I love it. It’s training the offense. The last couple of days, we’ve had some interceptions because guys are playing their leverage, and guys are following the quarterback’s intentions, all those things. So it’s training both of us.”
The Panthers defense largely bested the Jets first-team offense Thursday. That said, to punctuate the practice, Rodgers spearheaded a surgical two-minute drill drive that ended in a touchdown.
Major injury updates: Dane Jackson out for a while, Chandler Zavala hurt
Canales said projected starting cornerback Dane Jackson sustained a significant hamstring injury Wednesday. The ailment is expected to sideline him for roughly six weeks, according to the head coach. Safety Xavier Woods, a fellow starting DB, injured his groin Sunday; he is expected to miss a couple of weeks.
And there are the injuries that happened Thursday, which were also notable.
According to Canales, Hubbard suffered a knee injury on the collision with Clark. However, initial testing for the knee was positive and the Panthers will continue to monitor Hubbard’s status.
Second-year guard Chandler Zavala — who had been working with the first team at left guard as a fill-in for Damien Lewis — suffered a hamstring injury that Canales said the team was concerned about. Canales said Zavala was having a strong camp before the injury.
Outside linebacker Kenny Dyson suffered a groin injury during the joint practice as well.
Right guard Robert Hunt suffered a knee ailment in the middle of practice, but eventually returned for team drills in the second half of the workout.
Wide receiver Diontae Johnson (groin), pass rusher Jadeveon Clowney (rest day), safety Sam Franklin (foot), pass rusher K’Lavon Chaisson (undisclosed), outside linebacker Cam Gill (hand), center Cade Mays (shoulder), guard Jack Anderson (undisclosed), offensive tackle Badara Traore (knee), defensive end LaBryan Ray (illness), tight end Ian Thomas (calf) and defensive tackle Jaden Crumedy (ankle) were all sidelined for practice.
Running back Jonathon Brooks (knee) remains on the non-football injury (NFI) list. Offensive tackle Yosh Nijman (leg) and pass rushers Amare Barno (knee) and D.J. Wonnum (quad) remain on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.
With so many injuries piling up, the Panthers are going to have a tough time fielding preseason rosters over the next couple of weeks if they decide to rest their starters. The injuries could also create frustrating situations with the cut-down deadline, as the team will need to maneuver around them for Week 1.
The saving grace with cuts, from an injury perspective, is that the league is now allowing teams to place two players on the injured reserve list with return designation statuses at the deadline. In previous years, teams had to carry all their injured players for an extra day in order for them all to be eligible for returns. Teams are allowed eight return slots on injured reserve, and with Franklin, Jackson, Woods, Mays and Crumedy dealing with notable injuries, the Panthers could decide to place them on injured reserve with return slots, which would cost them the first four games (at least) of the season.
Quick hits
▪ Following practice, the Panthers claimed guard Mason Brooks off waivers from the Washington Commanders. Brooks has yet to appear in an NFL regular season game. He is listed as 6-6 and 315 pounds. In a corresponding move, the Panthers waived guard Nash Jensen — who didn’t practice Thursday — with an injury designation. Jensen will be subject to waivers, and if he goes unclaimed, he will revert to Carolina’s injured reserve list.
▪ Boone — who showed his toughness in confronting a defensive lineman — has been a standout on special teams and offense this season. The journeyman running back has caught the ball well out of the backfield and is a strong runner. He’s also been noteworthy as a kick returner.
▪ Special guests at practice included former Jets GM John Idzik — wearing a Panthers polo, likely in support of his son, offensive coordinator Brad Idzik — and former wide receiver Steve Smith.
▪ Follow Observer reporters Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) and Alex Zietlow (@alexzietlow05), and columnist Scott Fowler (@scott_fowler), on X, formerly known as Twitter, for the latest Panthers news and highlights.
This story was originally published August 15, 2024 at 2:35 PM.
