2 Carolina Panthers

Early in training camp Jason Peter took a seat in the back of a classroom for one of the Panthers' daily defensive line meetings. As his teammates filed in, one big name after another, Peter shook his head in amazement. "It was like a who's who of defense," says Peter, a defensive end himself and the club's first-round draft pick in 1998. "I couldn't help but think, What if an offensive coordinator was sitting in my seat? What would be going through that guy's mind?"

The first person Peter saw walk into the room that day was Sean Gilbert. A Pro Bowl player in 1993, he was signed by Carolina in '98 to a seven-year, $46.5 million contract—the biggest contract ever given to a defensive player. His play was disappointing that season, but last year Gilbert was one of the team's best defenders even though he was routinely double-teamed. He led Panthers linemen with 46 tackles and 22 quarterback hurries.

Despite Gilbert's effort, Carolina finished 26th in the league in defense. While the offense caught fire over the second half of the schedule—Steve Beuerlein became just the 11th passer in NFL history to throw for more than 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns in a season—it wasn't enough to overcome the defensive shortcomings. Carolina gave up an average of 26.5 points in its final eight games, and the team finished 8-8 and out of the playoffs. "Last year just shows you win with defense," says Peter, "and your defense is only as good as your defensive line. So it all starts up front. We didn't get it done there last year, so the club brought in a little help."

Following Gilbert through the door that day was defensive end Chuck Smith, a free agent whom Carolina lured away from the Falcons with a five-year, $21 million contract. A nine-year veteran who terrorized the Panthers before joining them, Smith is second on Atlanta's career sack list, with 58�. He's just the spark plug and pass rusher that the Panthers needed. Just ask him. "The Falcons turned their backs on me and pushed me out the back door," says Smith. "Now I'm in Carolina where we have a deeper defensive line than I ever thought you could build in this league. I am going to bring some heat from the right side, I guarantee it. I'm going to be everywhere. And if we play up to our potential, this line could go down in history."

Next through the door after Smith came Reggie White, the NFL's alltime sacks leader, with 192� while playing for the Eagles and Packers. On July 23 the 38-year-old White ended a one-year retirement; after he'd resisted overtures from several teams, he says God told him to sign with Carolina. (Apparently the Big Guy in the luxury suite in the sky had a change of mind, seeing as how just three years ago He supposedly commanded White to retire.)

White immediately had a huge impact on the Panthers. Before his first week in camp was over he was tutoring the younger players on hand movement and footwork, preaching about stopping the run first ( Carolina gave up 4.2 yards per carry last year) and promising to help lift the Panthers' defense into the top five in the league. The latter notion might not be so far-fetched: When White joined the Packers in 1993, Green Bay's defense finished second in the league, up 21 spots from the previous season.

White is building a house in a suburb north of Charlotte, across the street from the one being built by another new Panther, defensive tackle Eric Swann, a North Carolina native who played in two Pro Bowls during nine injury-plagued seasons with the Cardinals. Swann, who has undergone seven knee operations and was released by Arizona in June, was thinking about taking the year off to rest his chronically ailing legs. But not long after White landed in Carolina, Swann reconsidered and signed a one-year deal for the league minimum ($440,000).

Coach George Seifert's plan is to use White and Swann about 15 to 20 plays a game each in pass-rushing situations. White will go in for Peter, and Swann will sub for fifth-year veteran tackle Tim Morabito. Smith's speed coupled with the brute strength of Gilbert and White assures that the Panthers will sack the quarterback more than the 35 times they did last year. More pressure up front can only help a secondary that is average at best. The all-star front also gives the Panthers enough depth to keep players rested more this year ( Carolina gave up 125 fourth-quarter points in 1999, third-highest total in the NFL) and enough balance to exploit double teams.

"You look at our depth chart on defense and see all those names, and that can get into the mind of a quarterback," says Beuerlein, a 14-year veteran. "There are some pass rushes in the league that genuinely scare you as a quarterback—and ours has to be one of them."

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