Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera calls team’s injuries ‘typical’ of preseason
Does it seem like there have been an awful lot of injuries during the Carolina Panthers’ training camp?
First there was Stephen Hill. Then Kelvin Benjamin. Frank Alexander tore his Achilles on Saturday. And now Ryan Kalil won’t play the rest of the preseason. And those are just a few.
But Panthers coach Ron Rivera said Monday after practice that this isn’t unlike most training camps.
“This is typical preseason unfortunately,” Rivera said, referring to the number of injuries and not necessarily the caliber of players. “You’re going to get two or three that are a little more serious than you’d like them to be and we’re at our two right now. Hopefully that’s where it remains.”
Starting on defense, end Charles Johnson did not practice again Monday with a sore calf. Johnson worked on the side with a weighted sled while practicing hand technique.
He strained the calf on Aug. 9 in Spartanburg and was held out until Aug. 17. He tried to practice that day but was carted back.
“Yeah, something like that,” Johnson said when asked if the soreness was worse than he originally thought. He said he’ll take it day-by-day on if he’ll play against the Patriots this week.
On offense, rookie Devin Funchess did not practice with a lingering hamstring strain, but Rivera sounded optimistic.
“He worked today with the trainer, did some route running and we’ll see how he is (Tuesday) morning,” Rivera said. “If he reacts nicely then he’ll get on the field.”
Tight end Ed Dickson said he experienced more soreness in his groin and was held out of team drills. He expects to play against the Patriots.
Other Panthers sitting out Monday were guard Amini Silatolu (calf), tight end Brandon Williams (groin), safety Colin Jones (groin), receiver De’Andre Presley (shin) and cornerback Lou Young (hamstring).
This story was originally published August 24, 2015 at 6:50 PM with the headline "Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera calls team’s injuries ‘typical’ of preseason."