Carolina Panthers: Kurt Coleman in the Concussion Protocol

Nov 27, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper (89) is upended by Carolina Panthers cornerback Daryl Worley (26) as Panthers teammates A.J. Klein (56), Thomas Davis (58) and Kurt Coleman (20) react during a NFL football game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 27, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper (89) is upended by Carolina Panthers cornerback Daryl Worley (26) as Panthers teammates A.J. Klein (56), Thomas Davis (58) and Kurt Coleman (20) react during a NFL football game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Carolina Panthers added another player to their injured list in the form of safety Kurt Coleman.

The Carolina Panthers will be headed to Seattle this weekend and it has all the indications of being an adventure. During the week the offensive line was reduced by three men. The team is still awaiting the return of star linebacker Luke Kuechly. Now the team can add another character to the list, starting safety Kurt Coleman.

Coleman has been a steady presence for the Panthers in a secondary with a lot of growing up to do. He joined the team a year ago as a special teams addition only to impress everybody and take over the starting safety job. He played well last season too to prove that he did belong in the starting defensive backfield.

His absence will turn over the safety position to Michael Griffin and Tre Boston. Boston had moved into a starter’s role but had shown difficulty in making some coverage reads. Why did Oakland gash A.J. Klein with Michael Crabtree? Often it was lack of safety support on an obvious matchup problem. Now Boston will be without his normal partner.

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Griffin was on his couch when the preseason ended but injuries turned him into the Panthers’ primary safety backup. He was called upon in the Atlanta game to shore up coverage but his lack of familiarity did not help much there. He has been used more smartly but the Panthers never imagined having to use him as a starting safety.

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Special teams maven Colin Jones forms the new support unit. If necessary rookie corner Daryl Worley could take some snaps at the position.

The Panthers have the good fortune and bad fortune to be playing the Seahawks in this position. Seattle plays a rather vanilla offense. That’s the good news. The bad news is the longer Russell Wilson stays upright, the more likely he will be to find someone open.