INDIANAPOLIS — As contract talks progress with unrestricted free agent All-Pro cornerback Josh Norman, the Carolina Panthers are not afraid to use the trump card in their back pocket if talks go south.
“I’m not in the business of developing players for other teams,” Panthers general manager Dave Gettleman said Wednesday at the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. “For some reason, it just doesn’t make sense. We’re going to try to get a deal done. If not, there are other options and maybe the tag gets used. Josh is a pro. He’s a pro.”
The Panthers want to secure Norman before focusing on other areas of weakness, which includes finding a stable bookend cornerback and beefing up the defensive end position.
One spot Carolina is not sweating this season is wide receiver. After a standout rookie season in 2014, first-round pick Kelvin Benjamin tore his ACL in 2015 and is nearing full clearance for football activities. Gettleman said he was giddily discussing a Panthers’ offense that incorporates Benjamin and 2015 rookie receiver Devin Funchess.
“It’s certainly an exciting thing to imagine. My biggest fear last winter was ‘What are we going to do if Kelvin gets hurt?’” Gettleman said. “That’s why we made the move up. Devin got hurt in training camp and missed three weeks.”
Funchess flashed as a rookie but with Ted Ginn and Corey Brown stepping forward, the 20-year-old when drafted did not play a major role. He will in 2016, Gettleman believes, by following Benjamin’s lead.
“Kelvin has worked his fanny off. He’s been jogging — right after Christmas he started and doing some cutting,” Gettleman said. “He and Stephen Hill have done a great job. They’ve been rehab teammates. Like any other young kid, it took him a couple of weeks to get over the ‘woe is me stuff.’ But he’s doing a great job with his weight, right at 230.”
Gettleman has big decisions looming at defensive tackle, too, with draft class mates Star Lotulelei and Kawann Short potential free agents next spring.
“It’s a pretty strong defensive tackle draft,” Gettleman said with a smile. “You know that doesn’t upset me. You have to see how it all flushes out. It’s strong.”
Several defensive tackles are young, even by draft standards, but Gettleman understands that is now par for the course.
“We’re drafting guys you’ve got to change their diapers. It’s crazy,” he said. “When you get on the private workout circuit, that’s one of the things you really focus on — you focus on the intelligence and you focus on the maturity.
“We’re not getting instant oatmeal anymore. One of the concepts (Bill Walsh) had, he had a two-year rule. You had two years to prove your value to the San Francisco 49ers. No matter who you were. First-round pick, whoever. … Now it’s really a three-year rule. Nothing’s easy. The guy could have all the talent in the world. When we get them, they don’t have it. Our coaches have got to teach them and they’ve got to learn.”