Picking the worst Panthers' team of all time has been about finesse as much as brute-force. Fans have picked their spots, chosen wisely, and now we turn our attention to find two running backs to make this team as bad as possible.
Carolina have been lucky to have an excellent host of backs in their short career -- but that doesn't mean there aren't a few gems of absolute inability. In an effort for expediency we're combining running backs and full backer, but selecting the top two in the final vote.
Tshimanga Biakabutuka
Career statistics in Carolina: 50 games (35 starts), 611 attempts, 2,530 yards (4.1 YPA), 14 TD, 12 Fumbles
Oh Tish.
You knew this would be coming. To be fair to both Biakabutuka and the Panthers, this selection was an unmitigated disaster -- but it wasn't really anyone's fault. He had all the trappings of the next elite running back. Between his dominance at Michigan, and his place in the annals of NCAA history -- the only thing that could hold him back was over-use.
Upon entering the NFL it quickly became clear this wasn't going to go so well. Managing to play just four games his rookie season, Biakabutuka limped his way to six sad seasons in Charlotte. On the plus side: He took his NFL money and became a Bojangles frachisee... so he found a way to pay back Jerry Richardson.
Howard Griffith
Career statistics in Carolina: 31 games (21 starts), 77 attempts, 204 yards (2.6 YPA), 2 TD, 2 Fumbles
The first of three fullbacks on the list, Griffith was on the inaugural roster. While Griffith did a decent job lead-blocking in 1996 -- but was utterly underwhelming otherwise.
Toting the ball for the hard yards should be a fullback's forte, and Griffith couldn't do it. He's almost a man of mystery. He didn't enter the NFL until he was 26-years-old, and I can't find a single reason why. A two-year mediocre FB isn't normally enough to make the list -- unless you move on to the Denver Broncos and become the league's BEST fullback and win two rings.
Perhaps it's not in the spirit of the Kitty Litter to put good players on the team, but this wound cuts deep.
Nick Goings
Career statistics in Carolina: 105 games (13 starts), 400 attempts, 1,470 yards (3.7 YPA), 6 TD, 6 Fumbles
I didn't start this journey to be popular.
Goings tends to get remembered as the always-reliable third running back who would do everything well. When the RB position went to hell in 2004, he was there. Despite finishing with 821 yards that year, he only managed 3.8 yards per carry.
I'll confess that I have a soft spot for Goings, but when you look at the totality of his career in Carolina, he was not a very good player. In many ways he typifies John Fox's era -- an average guy, but a nice one... who somehow stuck around for eight years.
Scott Greene
Career statistics in Carolina: 24 games (14 starts), 45 attempts, 157 yards (3.5 YPA), 1 TD, 1 Fumble
You remember Scott Greene right? You know, the second fullback in team history?
Still nothing? Okay, we'll move on.
DeShaun Foster
Career statistics in Carolina: 63 games (40 starts), 851 attempts, 3,336 yards (3.9 YPA), 10 TD, 16 Fumbles
Before there was 'Dancing with the Stars' there was DeShaun Foster -- master of the East-West shuffle. Foster should have been an excellent NFL running back, and a player who excellent in the NFL due to his mix of size and speed. Alas, it just never worked out.
HE FUMBLED 16 TIMES!
I'm sorry about that. Foster's run in the 2003 NFC Championship game will be remembered as legendary, but his career from top to bottom was ugly. Making matters worse the Panthers jettisoned Stephen Davis early, believing it was Foster's time -- though to be fair, the wheels had already fallen off, I suppose.
I am an Australian, and I dislike Fosters... all of them.