OK, I am seeing a trend here with our free agency drafts. I think I know what Marty is up to. You know the old rule of thumb, in order to win, you have to beat the opposing team in one of the three areas; offense, defense, and special teams. I think the Panthers have the first one down, and it will only get better this year. Even without any additional help, Cam will be soo much better just from maturing one year and feeling more comfortable with the team. By the looks of the some of our new additions, I think that special teams will be our next real strength. Defense is another story, but we are getting there.

Snippets from the Panthers official website:

Haruki Nakamura, a safety who backed up perennial Pro Bowl selection Ed Reed for the Baltimore Ravens, has signed with the Panthers. "He's also an excellent special teams player, and he plays the game with a lot of passion."

Fullback Mike Tolbert, who rushed for more than 1,200 yards and scored 21 times over the past two seasons, has signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Panthers. "Mike is a very versatile player who can do a lot of different things for us," Panthers general manager Marty Hurney said. "He plays fullback, catches the ball well out of the backfield, plays running back, and is an outstanding special teams player. Tolbert also tied for the Chargers lead with 12 special teams tackles in 2011 and has 42 career special teams tackles

Carolina also has signed linebacker Kenny Onatolu, a special teams standout the last three years for the Minnesota Vikings. Onatolu made 49 special teams tackles for the Vikings over the past three seasons, tying for the team lead with 24 in 2009 and ranking third on the team in 2010 and 2011. He will reunite with Panthers special teams coordinator Brian Murphy, who held the same role with the Vikings in 2009 and 2010.

The Panthers have signed kicker Justin Medlock a 2007 draft pick of the Kansas City Chiefs who has enjoyed success in the Canadian Football League. The team has also waived kicker Adi Kunalic, who rejoined the team late last season to provide competition for veteran kicker Olindo Mare. That opportunity now falls to Medlock.

I think that the Panthers are showing early dedication to rebuilding the Special Teams. With these pick-ups, and the return of some of our injured Panthers, our Special Teams is shaping up to be a formidable squad.

Your thoughts….