Dave Canales addresses run defense, Coker on precautionary boot, and more

“I mean, like who wouldn’t,” pointed out Lee, of all the times he was targeted. “You got a rookie corner out there, and you want to see what he’s capable of and what he can do. As good a quarterback as Caleb Williams is, I expected that. That just leans back on me just having to execute and play our type of football.”

There are plenty of things for both Lee and the entire Panthers defense to work on this week. As a group, the unit gave up 552 yards of offense to the Bears.

As for the rookies’ impact, this has always been a coaching staff willing to take the lumps of a rookie growing period early on, knowing they’ll have to count on them as the season wears on. When Lee walked off the field Sunday afternoon and dove into the film that night, it was with gratitude to be in this position in the first place, and a promise to learn those lessons.

“Just personally speaking on myself, I just feel like I can just execute better,” said Lee. “People will say like, oh, that’s a rookie. Stuff like that, but I don’t want to live under that rookie rock.

“I want to be treated like a vet. I just want to play to the standard of my teammates, so it’s really me executing better and playing up to the level of my teammates and how we’re coached.

“It feels amazing to get out there early, get the little mess-ups, the little rookie mistakes out of the way. So when Week 8 and 9 come along, you’ve seen that, and you know what to expect, and you can play it faster and be more confident in your technique.

“So I feel like getting that out of the way and just getting those little bumps in the road early is a good thing for me.”