PantherFanz
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September 29,2005
BY STEVE REED
FREEDOM NEWS SERVICE
CHARLOTTE - Offensive linemen Jeff Mitchell and Mike Wahle both said Wednesday the Carolina Panthers did a poor job of changing up the snap count this past Sunday and the Miami Dolphins defense caught on pretty quick.
"We didn't change (the snap count)," Wahle said. "If you always go on 'one,' it isn't hard to figure out."
Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme typically is responsible for calling the team's snap count in the huddle, along with the formation and the play.
The Panthers gave up four sacks to Miami, one of which led to a Delhomme fumble.
"They definitely timed some stuff up that you can't (catch), especially being in an away environment," Mitchell said. "When they do things just as the ball is being snapped there is really no way to say, 'Hey, you get this guy and I'll get that guy.' That's where playing next to somebody really kicks in and you don't get to say anything, but you know what he's going to do."
When pressed on the snap count issue later on, Wahle backtracked some, saying, "Don't make too much out of that. Basically we have to do a better job of recognizing what is going on.
"And if things are happening fast, for whatever reason, there's no excuse. My point was irregardless of what is going on with that, there's no excuse and we (the offensive line) need to pick things up faster."
n Witherspoon's opinion: Outside linebacker Will Witherspoon missed practice on Wednesday while having a second opinion on the injured right knee that kept him out of the Miami game.
As of last night, Panthers general manager Marty Hurney had not heard back from on the doctor's report, but coach John Fox said he expects Witherspoon will be back at practice today.
"We think it's something where he'll be out here (tomorrow)," Fox said. "We're just taking an extra precaution."
Witherspoon said last week he had a lateral collateral ligament (LCL) sprain, an injury similar to what he had in his other knee the previous year. The LCL is the ligament that attaches the femoral condyle to the fibula head and provides stability to the knee.
n Lucas back to work: Meanwhile, cornerback Ken Lucas (shoulder) returned to practice and said he'll "definitely" play against Green Bay, although he's still listed as questionable on the injury report.
"I think in the long run it will prove to be a good thing for the team and myself that we gave it a week off and let it heal," Lucas said. "I hate to miss any game, but I think it was the right thing to do."
Among the others still listed as questionable for Monday night's game include tight end Mike Seidman (shoulder) and defensive ends Al Wallace (toe) and Kemp Rasmussen (knee).
n Inside information? Although Wahle spent seven seasons with the Green Bay Packers, Fox said the information Wahle can give them on how to beat the Packers is fairly limited.
"We watch hours and hours of tape," Fox said. "Other than some verbal communications or some player evaluations, you don't really get all that much inside (information). You've still got to go out and block and tackle between the lines, and the team that does that the best wins."
n Revenge on MNF: The Panthers were embarrassed last year by the Packers on Monday Night Football, and Fox said he hopes his team has learned a lesson from that 24-14 defeat.
"Last year was our first opportunity (to be on MNF) in quite some time," Fox said. "Hopefully, we'll learn from that and understand what's at stake there. The whole world is watching. There's no question all of your peers are watching. It's something that guys should gear up for, and I think we'll learn from that experience last year."
n So far, so good: Although he went through his most physical game on Sunday, running back Stephen Davis hasn't had any setbacks in his recovery from microfracture surgery.
"So far, he's had no ill effects with that (knee) and has performed well to this point," Fox said. "I think he'll just continue to get better."
Davis has his least productive game of season this past Sunday against Miami, held to just 36 yards on 16 carries after rushing for a combined 158 yards and four touchdowns on 38 carries in his previous two games. He was removed for a portion of the second half, but that was only to give DeShaun Foster some action and allow Davis to catch his breath in the Miami heat.
"We had some good runs in there," said Davis, whose longest run was 5 yards on Sunday. "My thing is to do better as far as running the ball. The thing we've got to do is get it done. We've got to do that. I've got to do that. Everybody in this locker room has to do better."
BY STEVE REED
FREEDOM NEWS SERVICE
CHARLOTTE - Offensive linemen Jeff Mitchell and Mike Wahle both said Wednesday the Carolina Panthers did a poor job of changing up the snap count this past Sunday and the Miami Dolphins defense caught on pretty quick.
"We didn't change (the snap count)," Wahle said. "If you always go on 'one,' it isn't hard to figure out."
Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme typically is responsible for calling the team's snap count in the huddle, along with the formation and the play.
The Panthers gave up four sacks to Miami, one of which led to a Delhomme fumble.
"They definitely timed some stuff up that you can't (catch), especially being in an away environment," Mitchell said. "When they do things just as the ball is being snapped there is really no way to say, 'Hey, you get this guy and I'll get that guy.' That's where playing next to somebody really kicks in and you don't get to say anything, but you know what he's going to do."
When pressed on the snap count issue later on, Wahle backtracked some, saying, "Don't make too much out of that. Basically we have to do a better job of recognizing what is going on.
"And if things are happening fast, for whatever reason, there's no excuse. My point was irregardless of what is going on with that, there's no excuse and we (the offensive line) need to pick things up faster."
n Witherspoon's opinion: Outside linebacker Will Witherspoon missed practice on Wednesday while having a second opinion on the injured right knee that kept him out of the Miami game.
As of last night, Panthers general manager Marty Hurney had not heard back from on the doctor's report, but coach John Fox said he expects Witherspoon will be back at practice today.
"We think it's something where he'll be out here (tomorrow)," Fox said. "We're just taking an extra precaution."
Witherspoon said last week he had a lateral collateral ligament (LCL) sprain, an injury similar to what he had in his other knee the previous year. The LCL is the ligament that attaches the femoral condyle to the fibula head and provides stability to the knee.
n Lucas back to work: Meanwhile, cornerback Ken Lucas (shoulder) returned to practice and said he'll "definitely" play against Green Bay, although he's still listed as questionable on the injury report.
"I think in the long run it will prove to be a good thing for the team and myself that we gave it a week off and let it heal," Lucas said. "I hate to miss any game, but I think it was the right thing to do."
Among the others still listed as questionable for Monday night's game include tight end Mike Seidman (shoulder) and defensive ends Al Wallace (toe) and Kemp Rasmussen (knee).
n Inside information? Although Wahle spent seven seasons with the Green Bay Packers, Fox said the information Wahle can give them on how to beat the Packers is fairly limited.
"We watch hours and hours of tape," Fox said. "Other than some verbal communications or some player evaluations, you don't really get all that much inside (information). You've still got to go out and block and tackle between the lines, and the team that does that the best wins."
n Revenge on MNF: The Panthers were embarrassed last year by the Packers on Monday Night Football, and Fox said he hopes his team has learned a lesson from that 24-14 defeat.
"Last year was our first opportunity (to be on MNF) in quite some time," Fox said. "Hopefully, we'll learn from that and understand what's at stake there. The whole world is watching. There's no question all of your peers are watching. It's something that guys should gear up for, and I think we'll learn from that experience last year."
n So far, so good: Although he went through his most physical game on Sunday, running back Stephen Davis hasn't had any setbacks in his recovery from microfracture surgery.
"So far, he's had no ill effects with that (knee) and has performed well to this point," Fox said. "I think he'll just continue to get better."
Davis has his least productive game of season this past Sunday against Miami, held to just 36 yards on 16 carries after rushing for a combined 158 yards and four touchdowns on 38 carries in his previous two games. He was removed for a portion of the second half, but that was only to give DeShaun Foster some action and allow Davis to catch his breath in the Miami heat.
"We had some good runs in there," said Davis, whose longest run was 5 yards on Sunday. "My thing is to do better as far as running the ball. The thing we've got to do is get it done. We've got to do that. I've got to do that. Everybody in this locker room has to do better."
