The Panthers placed safety Haruki Nakamura on injured reserve Tuesday, their 13th player on the list and fourth defensive starter.
Having previously IR’d cornerback Chris Gamble, linebacker Jon Beason and defensive tackle Ron Edwards (along with center Ryan Kalil), the Panthers have lost considerable depth to injuries this year.
The secondary in particular has been hit hard. Starting strong safety Charles Godfrey was active last week, but didn’t play because of a back injury. Former starter Sherrod Martin had been placed on IR the week before.
That left them with rookie D.J. Campbell and special teamer Colin Jones playing most of last week’s game against the Falcons, which they amazingly won.
They promoted safety Anderson Russell to fill Nakamura’s roster spot.