Offensive Lineman · Carolina Panthers

Ikem Ekwonu

No. 79 · 5th season

Ekwonu starts camp on the sideline, but the Panthers aren't worried yet

The Carolina Panthers opened training camp without one of the most important people on their roster standing anywhere near the field.

Ikem Ekwonu plays left tackle — the position responsible for protecting the quarterback's blind side, the one coaches tend to lose sleep over first. He was placed on the physically-unable-to-perform list at the start of camp, meaning he could not practice with the team while he works through whatever is keeping him off the field.

The Panthers say they expect him back during the season. That is the hopeful read. The less comfortable one is that a team's starting left tackle being unavailable from day one is not a small thing — camp is where chemistry gets built, where a line learns to move together. Ekwonu will be catching up.

What he catches up to, and how quickly, is the question worth watching.

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