THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, September 21, 1996 TAG: 9609210542
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE LENGTH: 92 lines
Walk through the Carolina Panthers locker room and you can't help but notice the difference.
On one end are the Generation Xers, the young guys who are the future of the franchise: second-year quarterback Kerry Collins, massive tackle Blake Brockermeyer, and rookie running back Tshimanga - ``don't call me Tim'' - Biakabutuka.
On the other end are players former Redskins coach George Allen would have loved. In the far corner is bald, bespectacled linebacker Sam Mills, 37. Across from him is linebacker Kevin Greene, 34. Not far away are strong safety Brett Maxie and nose tackle Greg Kragen, both 34.
On one end the offense, the other the defense.
Young guys. Old guys.
The disparity is a key to the philosophy that has made the 2-0 Panthers - who play the 2-0 San Francisco 49ers Sunday - the most successful expansion franchise in NFL history.
It's a reason the Panthers are playing the biggest game in franchise history - a game that will establish early control in the NFC West - so early in their franchise history.
It's taken the Panthers just 18 games to reach the .500 mark. Since getting off to an 0-5 start last year, they've gone 9-4.
It once took years to build an expansion franchise. It's taken Tampa Bay 20 - and counting.
But the Panthers have had advantages expansion teams of the '60s and '70s didn't have: unrestricted free agency, extra draft picks.
And shrewd management. General manager Bill Polian and president Mike McCormack came up with a plan early and have stuck with it.
That plan: draft an offense, build a defense with veterans, through free agency.
Last year, the Panthers acquired Mills, Maxie, defensive end Mike Fox and linebacker Lamar Lathon through unrestricted free agency. The result was a defense that was rated fifth in the NFL.
Mills said having veterans was a key to Carolina's success.
``You need veterans to pull it together,'' Mills said. ``To run some of the stunts we've been able to run, some of this stuff is very complicated.''
Carolina plays an aggressive 3-4 defense, that uses zone-based blitzing schemes.
``You could have success with younger players, but you'd have to do it in a in a different way,'' Mills said. ``You couldn't have as much of a mix.''
Added to the player mix during the offseason were Greene, cornerback Eric Davis and backup linebacker Duane Bickett, all through unrestricted free agency.
While the defense has not been quite as successful as last year's - it's rated eighth in the NFC - the Panther have given up just two touchdowns this year. Maxie thinks the addition of Greene will eventually make it better.
``Our defense is pretty much predicated on the way our linebackers play,'' Maxie said. ``Not many teams play a 3-4 because they can't find four outstanding linebackers. He's upgraded our linebackers, and our front seven.''
Greene's arrival has allowed Lathon - a young pup of 29 - to move from the left outside spot to the right. Back where he wanted to be, Lathon has flourished. He leads the NFC in sacks, with five, and is second on the team in tackles, behind Mills.
Still, with teams averaging 310 yards per game against the Panthers, some have suggested the league is figuring out Carolina's blitzing ways.
Not so, says Mills.
``People are going to feel like they've figured us out,'' Mills said. ``But we're always changing things.''
While the ``future is now'' defensively, Carolina's offense remains a work in progress. The Panthers are rated 11th in the NFC and have scored just three touchdowns. Their saving grace has been kicker John Kasay, who has accounted for nearly two-thirds of the team's scoring. Kasey has kicked 10 field goals - three from beyond 50 yards - and has yet to miss.
With Collins out with a sprained left knee, the Panthers could be hard-pressed to score against a 49er defense rated the best in the NFL. Backup Steve Beuerlein is capable - he led Dallas to four straight wins and a playoff berth in 1991 - but San Francisco's defense has been unforgiving.
Still, excitement is running high in the Carolinas. The game became a sellout Wednesday, when 2,000 remaining tickets were sold in under an hour.
``Man, this is the third game of the season, you know, and everybody's talking about it,'' tight end Wesley Walls said. ``I don't think it's fair to say if we win or lose this game that we've arrived or we still have a long way to go. As a team we know we've got a lot of work to do.''
But in a little more than a season, have arrived at a critical destination: respectability.
``I think we made a statement last year, and we stuck to our commitment we made in the offseason to be a much better team,'' Maxie said. ``I don't think we've gone too fast. I don't think we're surprised at what's happened to this point.'' ILLUSTRATION: AP photo
[Sam Mills, center, celebrates his touchdown...]
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