Panthers Cut Reaves, Put Blackburn On IR
Facing a short week, the Panthers have made a handful of roster moves today as they prepare to host the Saints on Thursday night. The team announced today that it has signed tackle Mike Remmers off the Rams’ practice squad, promoted safety Robert Lester from its own practice squad, cut running back Darrin Reaves, and placed linebacker Chase Blackburn on season-ending injured reserve.
The Panthers are facing some injury issues on the offensive line and in the secondary, with tackles Byron Bell and Nate Chandler, and defensive backs Thomas DeCoud and Bene Benwikere all dealing with health problems to varying degrees. Those nagging injuries necessitated adding a player at each of those positions, and it makes sense that Reaves was one roster casualty — he subbed in when Jonathan Stewart, DeAngelo Williams, and Mike Tolbert were are all on the shelf, but with both Stewart and Williams expected to play this week, his services aren’t required for now.
As for Blackburn, he suffered a knee injury in Week 6, and had been sidelined since then. Even when he was healthy, the 31-year-old saw a reduction in playing time this season, with Carolina relying on nickel formations more frequently. In his six games in 2014, Blackburn logged 12 tackles and forced a fumble. He’ll be eligible for unrestricted free agency at season’s end.
Extra Points: Burnett, Long, Adams
ESPN’s staff put together a list of each team’s starter whose job is in jeopardy. Among the most notable are 49ers running back Frank Gore, Texans outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus and Packers safety Morgan Burnett. On Burnett, ESPN’s Rob Demovsky says, “When the Packers drafted Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in the first round, the thinking was that he would start alongside Burnett. Now, there’s a chance he could start instead of Burnett. Coach Mike McCarthy likes what Micah Hyde has done at free safety, and when Burnett strained his oblique muscle this week, he put Clinton-Dix in Burnett’s strong safety spot. The Packers made a major investment in Burnett last summer with an $8.25 million signing bonus as part of a four-year extension, but he followed it with an unproductive season.”
Here’s a few miscellaneous links from around the league:
- Panthers veteran linebacker Chase Blackburn is on that list, as second-year man A.J. Klein is pushing for the starting job, but Blackburn is embracing his role as mentor, writes Scott Fowler in the Charlotte Observer.
- With the Eagles in Chicago to play the Bears tonight, Zach Berman of Philadelphia Inquirer writes about the relationship between Bears offensive lineman Kyle Long and Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, who helped Long get his career back on track during their time together at Oregon.
- The Steelers were hoping 2012 second-rounder Mike Adams would challenge for a starting tackle job, but that’s not happening, writes ESPN’s Scott Brown. Adams has been inconsistent, and “It would be charitable to put Adams among the Steelers’ best seven offensive linemen through the first 11 practices,” according to Brown. Adams started 10-of-15 games played last season, but struggled and “earned” a -4.9 overall rating from Pro Football Focus.
- Cowboys rookie safety Ahmad Dixon’s ‘Welcome to the NFL’ hit left him with a concussion, reports Drew Davison of the Star-Telegram.
- The Seahawks’ secondary has established itself as the “Legion of Boom.” The Buccaneers are trying to establish the offensive equivalent, with the trio of Vincent Jackson, first-rounder Mike Evans and second-rounder Austin Seferian-Jenkins going by the “Three Dunkateers,” writes USA Today’s Jim Corbett.