South Charlotte Today

CHARLOTTE — Panthers head coach Dave Canales addressed concerns about the cornerback position on Wednesday afternoon. "Not now," he stated.

The Panthers have recently bolstered their cornerback roster, adding four new players in the past week to support Jaycee Horn and veteran nickel Troy Hill. General manager Dan Morgan claimed three cornerbacks off waivers on Wednesday: Keenan Isaac, Shemar Bartholomew, and Tariq Castro-Fields. This follows last week's trade for former Seahawks starter Mike Jackson.

"We've got guys to look at, so just again gathering as much information," Canales said. "We were hoping for somebody to just step up and take it and really show us what they can do."

Canales emphasized his responsibility alongside Morgan to bring in players with the desired traits for their defense. He mentioned that if a game were held today, Jackson would likely start opposite Horn against the Saints in a week and a half. The newly acquired players are generally larger than those they replaced, aligning with Canales' focus on specific defensive traits.

"I just really feel like we owe it to this team to look; we looked across all the league and kind of compared it to the roster we had, and we've been talking about challenging our roster from the beginning," he added.

Mike Jackson held his first press conference since joining the team. He prefers being called Mike but noted that his family still calls him Michael. Jackson praised teammate Jon Rhattigan, calling him a "dog"—a term meant positively by Morgan and the front office.

Jackson elaborated on different types of "dogs" metaphorically representing player characteristics: "Everybody is a dog, but you got different kinds... Like that doesn't mean to be a chihuahua. But at the same time, you can't just in every situation be trying to be aggressive and over the top." He described himself as "a pitbull but with the body of a Neapolitan Mastiff."

The Panthers face challenges at tight end due to Ian Thomas not practicing and Tommy Tremble being limited recently. Tremble aims to be ready for the opener against New Orleans. Rookie Ja'Tavion Sanders remains active on the roster while veteran Jordan Matthews has rejoined via practice squad.

Canales praised Matthews for redefining his career as a tight end: "What a great achievement for Jordan... He was out there every day... And then, on top of that, from a leadership standpoint..."

The Panthers practiced in late afternoon heat after experiencing mild training camp weather conditions in Spartanburg. Canales commented on adjusting practices closer to noon during regular season games which mostly kick off at 1 p.m.

Following Ihmir Smith-Marsette's waiver on Wednesday, Raheem Blackshear and David Moore are considered capable replacements for punt return duties along with practice squad running back Mike Boone.

None of Tuesday's waived players were claimed by other teams; however, former wideout Terrace Marshall Jr. has joined the 49ers practice squad according to multiple reports.