Old North Banter
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Carolina Panthers: Who to Bench (Not in a Bad Way)

By John Woodcock

Dec 24, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers middle linebacker Luke Kuechly (59) and quarterback Cam Newton (1) on the field before the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 24, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers middle linebacker Luke Kuechly (59) and quarterback Cam Newton (1) on the field before the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Carolina Panthers have one last game and nothing to play for. Who should not take part?

The Carolina Panthers sat Luke Kuechly during their loss to the Atlanta Falcons. It was a precautionary measure as Kuechly had passed through the concussion protocol and been cleared to play. His performance in the game did not matter much either since the Packers would have eliminated the Panthers from playoff contention regardless of the result of the Atlanta game.

With the Panthers now out of the playoffs, the question should be who to bench next? The Tampa game is worth nothing to the team. A loss might be more valuable than a win because that could improve the Panthers draft position depending on what the teams clustered near the Panthers do. The Panthers could be looking at top ten draft pick. The last one of those the Panthers had was Luke Kuechly.

So who is worth benching?

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  • Luke Kuechly – it’s probably inevitable anyway but Kuechly should remain off the field until next season. There is no reason to tempt the ghost of Dan Morgan any more than the Panthers already do.
  • Cam Newton – No reason exists to place Newton in harm’s way. Even the Falcons game saw its share of unnecessary hits on the quarterback and it is clear the league is not going to call any of them. Let Derek Anderson play the Bucs as he has done for three straight games.
  • Trai Turner – Turner has seen action at guard and tackle this season. He was a Pro Bowler last year and there is no reason to risk a freak injury on him this late in the season. There is no need to test what he can do.

    • Andrew Norwell

    – similar reasons to Turner, just get the starting guard to next year’s training camp in one piece.

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  • Charles Johnson – hamstring issues, just let him rest
  • Devin Funchess – knee issue, don’t mess with it
  • Tre Boston – nagging injury, just sit him down
  • Thomas Davis – every year Davis plays from here on out is a gift. He is healthy right now, let him leave the season that way.
  • Greg Olsen – Olsen deserves to be protected and the team needs to see what it is like when he is not available.
  • Jonathan Stewart – the running back has a history of random injuries. Play Cameron Artis-Payne and don’t think about it.

    • Next: Rivera to the Rams?

    So there are the Panthers who should sit out the Bucs game. We’ll just have to see if that is indeed what happens this upcoming week.

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