CHARLOTTE — Derrick Brown looked around Saturday and saw some familiar faces, guys he's known for years, and getting to know better as they come around.

And he wants what they've enjoyed in the past.

Brown said that seeing Legends such as Brentson Buckner, Mike Rucker, Luke Kuechly, Thomas Davis, and others around for the weekend and at Back Together Saturday dovetails with what the current team wants to achieve, and seeing the looming induction of Julius Peppers into the Pro Football Hall of Fame adds to it.

"Just to be able to sit down and have a conversation with them, talk to them, I mean, that's what it's all about, man," Brown said. "That's what this game is about, being able to lean on them and have them reach out. I mean, to be able to get wisdom from them means a lot.

"I mean, those guys have been here, done that. We're still in pursuit of trying to get there. For the guys that took over this game, especially like when Pep comes back, being able to have a conversation with him, KK (Kawann Short), TD. Luke is constantly around. I mean, they're having those conversations with them and trying to figure out what it was like when they were here? I mean, that's a big part of trying to set a culture."

Toward that end, Brown said this team is eager to put last season behind it and start building back toward the success he hears about from those guys when they come back.

"I mean, we got a fresh opportunity to go out and do something special. You know, it sucks to go 2-15," Brown said. "You've got to come in and go to work every single day with that hanging over your head, and it is what it is, but you've got to go out and do your job. So this presents an opportunity for us to go out here and turn this around and do something special."

Of course, offseason optimism is harder to feel when it's been a pattern of recent offseasons, and they can't really do anything about expectations until the games start in September. But Brown said the way they've worked this year under head coach Dave Canales and defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero has been noticeable.

"I think it started on the first day we reported for OTAs," Brown said. "I think the tone was set by coach and coach E for us. It was, we're going to do the things, we're going to have a way, and we're going to live it. I mean, nobody's resisted that. Everybody's bought in and for us to be able to go out there and change the reputation. You don't want to be the ranked 32nd team out of 32 teams, in no way possible. So for us to go out here and be an actual contender and be able to compete, I mean, that's what we're trying to do."

— Through the first three practices of camp, Canales has talked a lot about the importance of the run game and being as physical — as much as you can in these unpadded practices.

It's an emphasis for him and will ratchet up in intensity next week.

The team will go in full pads for the first time Tuesday morning (and a limited number of walk-up tickets will be available for that one), and then go in full pads again next Thursday during the Fan Fest practice at Clemson.

"We'll have two padded practices within about three days there," Canales said. "So that'll be a good physical challenge for the guys, to get that first padded day and then follow it up pretty quickly with another one. It is great for them to have to challenge themselves with the soreness. You know, can I stay focused? Can I execute my assignment? Knowing my body is really starting to feel the challenge and the rigors of camp. So, looking forward to that."

— Austin Corbett knows the numbers. He's had two back-to-back injuries. He missed 13 games last season. He's starting one new position (moving from guard to center). But he also knows another number, and it's the one he wants people to be reminded of.

"Obviously, everyone keeps saying two season-ending injuries," Corbett said. "People forget, I started 17 games that year (2022). It's not a season ender. Yeah, OK, great. Missed the second half of the last game of the year."

Not only did Corbett start 17 games in 2022 before an ACL injury kept him out of the second half of the last game, he started every game in 2020 and 2021. After recovering from the ACL injury, four games into the 2023 a knee injury sent Corbett back in to repair a MCL. The back-to-back injuries though still pale in comparison to the overall starting experience and preparation to take on the center position, according to Corbett.

"Everyone's like MCL being a significant injury; it's a very superficial surgery, not invasive, like ACL was," he said. "It's a very routine maintenance job and so it's like we're fine guys, like we're going to be out there, it's going to be fine. We're going to go play ball and I've always been ready, prepped to be an emergency center. So now we're just doing it and it's fine."

—The Panthers tight end unit seems to get a bit more crowded every day. Already rolling five deep at the beginning of the week, the club added another on Friday, when Feleipe Franks came about. The numbers game came down to Tommy Tremble's hamstring injury, Canales shared on Saturday, and the precaution to not only keep it from worsening but considering the other tight ends as well.

"If we're going to get Tommy fully healthy, then we really had to shut him down," Canales explained Saturday. "With every positional group, the strength of the group is the number. The minute one person goes down, well his 8 to 12 reps get distributed with the rest of the group. And so the tight end position in particular is a very physical position and this is one that we always try to have about six guys as we go through camp, just so that we can have those legs and keep those guys strong and healthy to be able to stay out there.

"So, that was a big part of it and Felipe did a great job in his workout. He impressed us and we're excited to see what he can do."

With snaps up for grabs amongst the group though, each guy has taken the opportunity to have their "play" during the week. Whether it was breaking free on a scramble drill to pull in a ball in the back of the endzone, like Jordan Matthews did on Saturday, or using a bigger frame to out muscle defenders over the middle of the field for a big gain, like Stephen Sullivan did Wednesday, for just a couple of examples, each man in the room has made a moment for himself.

As the Panthers inch closer to cut-down day in late August, it will be reliability that sets guys apart in Canales' mind.

"We put a lot on those guy's plate. I would say, quarterback definitely has the most, tight ends probably right behind that because of their connection to the run game, pass game and pass protection. So, we really asked them to do a lot," Canales offered. "So, we're looking for that. Can we count on you with all the things that we're going to ask you to do? And then beyond that, when we get into situational football third downs, when we get into our two-minute drives, really looking to see who can be a viable target for Bryce Young, for Andy Dalton, as we get through camp and they get those opportunities. Who's going to come up with those plays?"

— There were a couple of impressive shots downfield in practice, with Terrace Marshall Jr. snagging a touchdown pass from Dalton and Young rolling to his right and hitting Xavier Legette down the sidelines.

With second-year wideout Jonathan Mingo flashing in OTAs and camp, it's becoming a deep group with Canales mentioning David Moore and Ihmir Smith-Marsette, and newcomer Deven Thompkins as well.

"You see Mingo, Terrace Marshall really showing who they are. David Moore, you throw the ball that his way, he comes up with it," Canales said. "I've really seen those guys come through, and when we can depend on them. So it's a really good room, it's a really good competition, some different style of players. Ihmir making some nice plays today.

"So it's something that we're counting on, right? We talk about creating that competition and challenging every position, and that's exactly what we want. We want to make sure everybody's pursuing their best. They're not looking left and right. They're just focusing on their execution, and we're getting good execution out of those guys right now."

— The Panthers are trying to be smart with workloads this week, both in terms of roster moves and reps within individual practices.

As with adding a tight end to keep the numbers up, they cut into other player's reps.

Likewise, after cornerback Jaycee Horn hit some top speeds during Thursday's practice, they decided to monitor his work Saturday and carve into his reps. He went through the first half of practice, and then took a few periods off, with DiCaprio Bootle working with the starting defense.

— Rookie kicker Harrison Mevis was 3-of-5 during his turn in the kicking competition on Saturday.

— Brown is among the veterans who get to sleep in their own homes now that camp is in Charlotte, which is doubly sweet for him since he and his wife recently celebrated the birth of a baby daughter.

"So I'm getting a lot of daddy time right now," he said with a grin. "So I appreciate that."

Of course, he still has a physically demanding job, so getting a decent night's sleep remains important, and having a newborn in the house can complicate that. But Brown has a secret weapon.

"Yeah, my wife's a trooper," he said. "I barely hear anything. But I hear the story in the morning."

He appreciates that, too.