FanHouse NateSalley

Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.

John Fox and Marty Hurney headed into 2008 with their jobs on the line after an underwhelming 2007 that featured a whole lot of Mittens and not a lot of excitement in Charlotte. They decided to throw caution to the wind and play for "now" by trading their 2009 first-round pick for a chance to pick up both Jeff Otah and Jonathan Stewart in the first round of the draft.

With a healthy Jake Delhomme, Julius Peppers finally deciding to care, a road-grading offensive line and a rejuvenated Smash and Dash running game that featured DeAngelo Williams and Stewart, the Panthers surprised some people by winning the NFC South and looking like a Super Bowl-caliber squad.

Training camps are underway, the NFL season is a month off, and to get you ready for 2008, FanHouse previews all 32 teams, "heat index" style. We'll rate each club in 10 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

Quarterback: Jake Delhomme is coming off Tommy John surgery so no one knows what to expect. At the end of 2006, some fans wanted someone new at quarterback. Before he was injured in 2007, he was off to a white-hot start. How he recovers will go a long way to a successful Panthers season. Matt Moore filled in nicely late last season and may be the team's future. Brett Basanez isn't ready for prime time. No more Vinny or Mr. Mittens. Heat Index: 5

Running backs: The Panthers have been looking for a Stephen Davis type back and may have found one in rookie Jonathan Stewart. He's the kind of bull coach John Fox likes to center his offense around. DeAngelo Williams will be more efficient as a change-of-pace back. Brad Hoover is back again as an effective fullback. Nick Goings is always around to back up anybody. Heat Index: 5

The Carolina Panthers have signed strong safety Chris Harris to a four-year, $3 million-per-year contract extension yesterday. The Panthers acquired Harris from the Bears for a fifth-round pick last August after Mike Minter retired, and he had a fantastic season, making 97 tackles and forcing 8 fumbles.

That's great, Panthers. Who's the free safety?

Deke Cooper is a free agent, and I think we all know neither he nor Quinton Teal are the answer here. There's a possibility Nate Salley could return. He was expected to start at free safety last season until a knee injury sidelined him for the season. His current status is up in the air.

My guess, though, is that Marty Hurney will either sign a free agent or draft someone this offseason. Ken Hamlin would be ideal, but the Cowboys are considering slapping a franchise tag on him. Cincinnati's Madieu Williams and Atlanta's Chris Crocker (Leave Britney alone!!!) and Minnesota's Mike Doss are also available, though nobody's talking about the Panthers pursuing any of them.

Either way, this position needs to be addressed sooner rather than later. If Hurney thinks the Panthers can count on a dodgy-knee Buckeye and a couple of no-names at safety, though, he's clearly deluded.

Remember when Nate Salley was going to be the Carolina Panthers' safety of the future? Apparently that future is still somewhere in the future. The Panthers placed Salley on injured reserve today, freeing up a roster spot for Jeremy Bridges.

Salley never recovered from the knee injury he suffered in training camp, and that plus Mike Minter's retirement left Carolina scrambling to find safeties. Former Bear Chris Harris and free agent journeyman Deke Cooper are starting at safety right now, with waiver wire acquisition Marquand Manuel and free agent rookie Quinton Teal backing them up. Harris and Cooper seemed out of position a lot against the Texans, too, but it looks like they're still the starters for now.

The Panthers have really mishandled personnel at this position.
I understand why they let Shaun Williams and Colin Branch go, but counting on Minter and Salley has backfired for them. As I've said before, this defense will only be as good as its ability to stop the run and pressure the quarterback. Matt Schaub already proved that if the QB has time to throw against Carolina, they're doomed.

Taking into account that it's the preseason, many of the players sitting on the sidelines tonight would normally be on the field if it was a meaningful game. With that said, I'm sure most fans would like to know who they should expect to see this evening. For that reason, I've done by best to create an accurate injury report -- official reports are not posted until week one of the regular season.

New York Giants:

Out: Wide receiver Amani Toomer (knee), wide receiver Plaxico Burress (ankle), linebacker Gerris Wilkinson (knee), center Todd Londot (ankle), long snapper Ryan Kuehl (calf), safety Michael Stone (hip), cornerback E.J. Underwood (hip), cornerback Aaron Ross (glute) and defensive tackle Fred Robbins (calf)

Probable: Tight end Jeremy Shockey (leg) and defensive end Osi Umenyiora (hip).

Playing: Lots of rookies and free agents. (Kidding, obviously. But seriously, can this team ever escape the injury bug?)

So safety Nate Salley tweaked his knee in practice yesterday morning and spent the afternoon with Carolina Panthers trainers. His fellow starting safety, veteran Mike Minter, was also held out of the afternoon practice as a precaution.

That means the guys practicing at safety with the Panthers' first team yesterday afternoon were 7th-round pick C.J. Wilson and free agent journeyman Deke Cooper. Last I checked, there was nobody behind them, and doesn't that just warm your hearts, Panthers fans?

Thankfully, Salley's knee injury isn't serious. He's currently listed as day-to-day and might be back at normal speed by the end of next week. John Fox better hope so, anyway, as his team is counting on Salley to be the future at that spot. I get the feeling Marty Hurney saw who was practicing there yesterday afternoon and put a note in his Blackberry to check the waiver wire and the NFL Europe rosters.

Speaking of NFL Europe, Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer has a nice write-up on Philippe Gardent, the French linebacker hoping to find a spot on the Panthers roster. I'll save the cheap jokes about French headbutting for when they're actually funny.

UPDATE (1:15 PM): Carolina just signed a safety today -- former Virginia starter and career NFL reserve-squader Jermaine Hardy. I don't know much about him, but we should be nice to him. He's been through a lot.