The Panthers closed the first quarter of their season with a 3-1 mark and their defense will be getting a big piece back as they try to keep the wins coming.
Linebacker Thomas Davis’ four-game suspension came to an end when Graham Gano’s 63-yard field goal sailed through the uprights to give the Panthers a 33-31 win over the Giants and the team won’t spend much time easing him back into the mix. Head coach Ron Rivera said at his Monday press conference that Davis will be in the starting lineup against Washington in Week Six.
David Mayo started three of the four games while Davis was out, but only played 35 percent of the overall defensive snaps. Davis played just under 80 percent of the snaps last season and Rivera said Monday that the team has missed his energy.
The Panthers offense could also get a boost this week. Rivera said he’s hopeful tight end Greg Olsen can return from his foot injury, which is something Olsen said is not out of the question after returning to practice last week.