Lighter practices enjoyed by Panthers

By Darin Gantt - dgantt@carolina.rr.com

CHARLOTTE -- It might not seem like much, but to players, those 10 pounds can mean everything.

Coach John Fox has taken a different approach this season, allowing his players to wear shorts and shells to their Wednesday practices rather than full pads. They still go in full pads on Thursdays, but Fox has eased back on practices with his banged-up team. It's been a gradual process for Fox, a notoriously old-school coach who didn't allow the first non-padded practice last year (outside the bye week) until Nov. 26.

Wednesday and Thursday are the two most important days of practice each week, when the game plan is installed.

But without players taking the extra pounding that comes with the extra pounds of equipment, they're hoping to have a fresher team come Sunday.

“We appreciate it a lot,” safety Chris Harris said last week. “We originally did it because we had guys nicked up, guys with limited practice. You don't want guys who can practice on Wednesday and not Thursday. So, you take the pads off, lighten it up and then get your full practice on Thursday and make it through the week.

“We love it. I love the schedule. I won't complain about it.”

Quarterback Jake Delhomme initially said it wasn't that different from the past, but reminded about the late date of last year's break, he admitted he thinks it helps players focus.

“Even guys who haven't missed a game have been banged up, and they just suck it up,” Delhomme said. “So I think at first it was to see where we were physically on one day (of full pads).

“It's a welcome break, I'll tell you that. And we do get a lot of meat and potatoes on Thursday.”

Equipment manager Jackie Miles said the difference seems slight, considering the eight to 10 pounds of shoulder pads and the various knee, thigh and hip pads in their pants. But to players, even the slightest reduction in their workload makes them appreciate the coach who delivers.

“It's like joy to your bones,” said Eugene Robinson, the former safety who now works as the Panthers' radio analyst. “It's like when you're a kid and the ice cream truck starts coming down the street. You're happy and you don't even know why, because you're about to get some ice cream, and you stay happy all day.

“Honestly, as a player, it's a luxury when you're able to work that way.”

FEELING THE DRAFT: The Panthers reduced their stockpile of draft picks to five with last week's trade for defensive tackle Tank Tyler.

They sent their 2010 fifth-rounder to Kansas City for Tyler, after moving their 2010 first to San Francisco so they could take defensive end Everette Brown. They also sent their 2010 sixth to Cleveland for injured defensive tackle Louis Leonard.

That leaves them with their own second-, third-, fourth- and seventh-rounders next year, along with Oakland's sixth-rounder from a draft day trade-down last spring.

But the Panthers' offseason frugality will actually yield some extra choices next spring.

Since they lost three significant free agents and signed none, they should be in line for at least two compensatory picks from the league.

Though the league's formula for doling out such picks is secret, it's based on the net gains and losses, the contracts given, and the level of play for the players involved.

Two league sources said last week the Panthers should get a fifth or a sixth for both Geoff Hangartner and Frank Omiyale since they're starting for their new teams and being paid as such, and could get a seventh for losing return man Mark Jones to Tennessee.

EXTRA POINTS: A staple of Tuesdays throughout the NFL are the off-day workouts for available free agents. The Panthers used to bring in a half-dozen or more each week to take a look at, but they pulled back on that this season.

In fact, last Tuesday was the first time all season they brought anyone in. They worked out defensive tackles Rashaad Duncan and Joshua Leonard (signing Duncan to the practice squad), along with special-teamer Keith Lewis, who was signed to fill suspended Dante Wesley's roster spot for the day. They've had two other players in for “visits” (league code for physicals), eventually signing defensive tackle Antwon Burton and wide receiver Dexter Jackson (practice squad).

The lack of Tuesday cattle calls likely stems from the organization's philosophy shift, as general manager Marty Hurney long has preferred game tape to workouts in shorts for making decisions. ...

Jason Baker became the franchise's all-time leading punter last week, with three to get him to 351 here. That surpasses the old mark of 350 by Todd Sauerbrun.