While you may have read a lot about first-round draft pick Jon Beason, second rounders Dwayne Jarrett and Ryan Kalil and even fourth-round pick Ryne Robinson, there's been almost nothing written about Carolina's third-round pick Charles Johnson.
Why is that?
Because Johnson, a defensive end from Georgia, has done absolutely nothing to this point to stand out from the crowd except for one day in practice when he jumped off-sides a few times.
Quite frankly, Johnson, who is listed in the media guide as 6-foot-2 and 270 pounds, looks undersized at defensive end and is getting swallowed up by larger offensive linemen. And right now he'd better not take making the 53-man roster for granted. The Panthers have been known to cut underperforming third-round draft picks before, most notably defensive tackle Atiyyah Ellison in 2005.
For the record, here is what coach John Fox had to say about Johnson on Wednesday: "I think he's been very promising. He's still learning. He's a young player that is figuring out how to do things in the NFL, and I like what I've seen so far."
(Incidentally, I'm wondering if there's anyone on the Panthes roster Fox has seen that he doesn't like. I know, I know. His job is not to degrade his players, but don't you think sometimes a little blow to the ego might do the player some good and actually spur him on. Remember Dick Vermeil's comment to Larry Johnson about taking off his diapers. Well, that seemed to work pretty good. Now Johnson is an NFL star... But I digress...)
Anyway, it's unclear if the Panthers will keep four or five defensive ends this season. You have to figure Julius Peppers, Mike Rucker and Stanley McClover are locks. Fox also likes what he's seen (of course) from Dave Ball and Otis Grigsby. Johnson had better step up -- and step up soon if he wants to make this team.
Fox believes Johnson will learn more as he spends more time with Peppers and Rucker.
"It's a little bit like a year ago," Fox said. "Stanley McClover came in here and was a young guy that got the tutelage from both of those guys. That helps them get through and learn. You're learning from guys that have been doing it for a long time."