Panthers coach Ron Rivera and General Manager Dave Gettleman decided to skip LSU’s pro day yesterday, even though their interest in running back Leonard Fournette is real.
But it’s OK, they’ll get a chance to catch up next week when he has a private visit to Charlotte, per the Charlotte Observer.
The Panthers did send running backs coach Jim Skipper and offensive coordinator Mike Shula to Baton Rouge yesterday to see the slimmed-down Fournette, who makes sense for the Panthers on multiple levels.
They’ve made it a stated goal to have quarterback Cam Newton run it less in the future, so giving him another bell-cow back to go with Jonathan Stewart seems like a reasonable plan. And even though they just gave Stewart a one-year contract extension, Fournette would give them a like-for-like replacement when he’s done.