Here at Cat Scratch Reader we have counted down the final 100 days leading up to the Carolina Panthers season opener by for at least the past ten years. We’ve always done this by highlighting the current player on the roster whose jersey number matches the day on the countdown. This year, we decided to change that up a bit by counting down our own list of the Top 100 Panthers of all time. This does not correspond to jersey number, does not need to be somebody who wore a jersey, and will in no way be controversial.
#91. Kurt Coleman
Kurt Coleman was a prime example of how a player’s fit within a team and organization can drastically affect what that player is capable of. He started his career with the Eagles after they made him a seventh round pick in 2010. He had a quiet rookie year, but an injury in front of him going into his second season gave him an opportunity to win the starting job. He was part of open competitions for the starting safety spot every year, eventually losing his grasp on the role by his fourth year in Philadelphia. He departed in free agency following that year, but failed to stick with the Vikings. He was picked up by the Chiefs, where he played well in a rotational role before again hitting the fee agent market.
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That’s when the Panthers swooped in. True to the franchise’s storied history of not investing in the safety position, the Panthers signed the career mediocre safety to very meager contract and then made him the starting free safety. It couldn’t have worked out better. During the 2015 season, Coleman intercepted seven passes, one short of the NFL lead, while chipping in 90 tackles. One of those interceptions was the famous pick six against Tony Romo in the Panthers’ Thanksgiving Day rout of the Cowboys. He was named to the Pro Bowl that season, the only time in his career in which he’d earn that distinction. He followed that up with a 95 tackle, four interception season in 2016.
Coleman’s play started to dip in 2017 before he departed for a couple of mercenary years with the Saints and Bills. He never regained his top level form and didn’t register an interception after the 2016 season.
The 2015 season was one of if not the most memorable season in the history of the Panthers. It defined an era of Panthers football, so any player that played a key role on that team is going to cement their legacy as one of the best players in the team’s history. Coleman is one of those players. The Panthers have not been able to find a player with Coleman’s production since his departure, and it sometimes feels like Coleman was the last free safety the Panthers cared to sign. His time with the team was relatively short, but his impact was felt, and he’s one of the players synonymous with one of the best times there was to be a Panthers fan.
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