Panthers HC Dave Canales drops hint on who may start at position of need
The Panthers may have had their starting nickel all along . . .
The Carolina Panthers may have had their starting nickel all along. Despite piecing together one of the most impressive offseasons in the NFL, the Panthers have seemingly neglected to address their weakness at slot cornerback. But head coach Dave Canales, when speaking with reporters following the team's second outing of rookie minicamp on Saturday, might've hinted at a solution that was already in place.
"That position right there—we have Chau [Smith-Wade] coming back," Canales stated. "We have Corey Thornton, who really won the job during the season last year and got an opportunity until he got hurt. So there's a great competition already happening.
" Thornton signed with the Panthers as an undrafted free agent last spring, and proceeded to turn heads during workouts through the summer. The 6-foot-1, 195-pounder went on to appear in eight contests as rookie before sustaining a broken fibula in Carolina's Week 12 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. The game prior saw Thornton record a career-high 46 defensive snaps during a 30-27 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
His efforts in that victory earned him a 70. 1 overall defensive grade and a 75. 8 coverage grade from Pro Football Focus.