Due to the NFL rule barring rookies from joining teams until their schools are out of session, Panthers first-round pick Christian McCaffrey wasn’t part of the team’s offseason program this spring.
That absence meant he had to familiarize himself with the team’s playbook from afar and it also meant that we didn’t get a chance to hear his teammates’ thoughts about how McCaffrey looks on the field. The last five days have given them an extended look at the rookie on the field, however, and veteran running back Jonathan Stewart has been impressed by his young colleague.
“He’s pretty unstoppable as far as coming out of the backfield running routes,” Stewart said, via Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. “I can tell you now there’s not going to be anybody in this league that can cover him 1-on-1.”
Person reports that linebacker Shaq Thompson found himself on the losing end of one such 1-on-1 matchup during Sunday’s practice and the team took him at the top of the first round because they envision him doing that to guys in different uniforms on a regular basis. It will be a little bit until they get a chance to see that play out, leaving time for more reviews like Stewart’s to amp up the anticipation levels.