For Panthers offensive line, the search for improvement continues

And they also opened the practice window for versatile lineman Brady Christensen, who has practiced fully this week as they determine whether to activate him. Christensen has started at all five line positions for the Panthers (and been their big tight end as an extra blocker, though he hasn’t caught a pass yet), and Goodwin admitted he looks forward to being able to use him again.

“He loves football. He’s super smart, and he’s athletic, and he’s willing to do anything for the team,” Goodwin said of Christensen. That’s the biggest thing for me. He’s all about the team. He wants to be out there. He’s getting back out there.

“We just love having him, and for me it’s kind of like a security blanket. He’s like my teddy bear. If I need him, I can go hug on him and put him here, there, or there, and I know he’s going to do a hell of a job. So it’s great to have him in the room. Hopefully we get him back out on the field.”

Whether it’s getting guys healthy, or simply playing more disciplined football, however, the coaches who work with those linemen (and the Panthers have staffed that group in a way that emphasizes its importance), know that one thing is clear.

“I mean, the bottom line is it wasn’t good enough,” Gilbert said of the Packers game, in which Bryce Young was sacked six times. “And it starts with us, it starts with myself, it starts with Goody. We put it on ourselves first, but at the same time we all have ownership of this, and like when I do the protection meetings with the running backs, the O-line and Bryce, every one of us had a different role in that, you know what I mean? It’s the O-line, it’s the running backs, and it’s Bryce too.

“So we all know that, and we know we’ve got to get better; it hasn’t been good enough.”