Carolina Panthers tackle Ikem Ekwonu witnessed Buffalo Bills cornerback Te’Cory Couch taking liberties with exposed wide receiver Jonathan Mingo, slamming the second-year wide receiver to the Highmark Stadium field.
Ekwonu hustled over to the aggressive opponent and shoved his overly aggressive opponent to the ground as he rose and celebrated the tackle.
Attempting to reshape the rebuilding squad’s chemistry, first-year coach Dave Canales preaches tough but team-first actions. Ekwonu put the practice on display.
Thought this protective reaction by #Panthers OT Ikem Ekwonu off the spiking of Johnny Mingo stood out on Saturday from a vibes and culture standpoint.
Almost like a retaliation pitch in baseball. Next play was the Young-Johnson connection on fourth down scramble drill. pic.twitter.com/NTsNSgvgKK
— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) August 26, 2024
Ikem Ekwonu Pushing 2023 Aside, Displaying Leadership Potential
Ickey Ekwonu Sparks Panthers’ Preseason Win
On a third-and-six play from the Bills’ 49-yard-line, quarterback Bryce Young hit Mingo on a pass in the flat for a 3-yard gain, capped by Couch’s extra-curricular body slam. In rushed Ekwonu, internally policing the situation.
On the next play, a risky fourth-down call by Canales, Young scrambled out of the pocket and hit new wide receiver Diontae Johnson on an improvised 17-yard gain. That was the type of play that simply didn’t exist during last season‘s NFL-worst 2-15 campaign.
Four plays later, Young completed Saturday’s opening possession with an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jordan Matthews. In his lone preseason series, Young capped his first scoring drive since the fourth quarter of a Christmas Eve loss to the Green Bay Packers, a span of 244 days.
The offensive spark helped the Panthers (1-2) end the exhibition season with a 31-26 victory over the Bills.
Few players on the Panthers roster have more to prove than Ekwonu, a 2022 sixth-overall draft pick. As a rookie, the former NC State standout fronted a run-first approach and displayed future All-Pro potential, failing to surrender a sack over his final 10 outings. As a sophomore starter, however, the supposed franchise left tackle struggled in a new system under former coach Frank Reich, who was fired following a 1-10 start last season.
Participating in all of the Panthers’ 1,149 plays, Ekwonu surrendered 11 sacks and failed to generate consistent running holes. As a unit, the Panthers’ offensive line surrendered 65 sacks. The offense produced a league-low 265.3 yards per game.
“A pretty humbling experience,” Ekwonu, a Charlotte, N.C., native, said May 30.
#panthers LT Ikem Ekwonu said he will rebound in 2024 and “take advantage of the resources” available to the 3rd-year #NFL pro … pic.twitter.com/kTjoTIksNH
— Jeff Hawkins (@WriterHawkins) May 30, 2024
Ekwonu Anticipates Quick Rebound
Absorbing Canales’ new run-first, quick-pass offensive approach during the offseason program and training camp, Ekwonu sounded confident in a quick, personal turnaround under new position coach Joe Gilbert.
The line of communication opened immediately.
“We met the second he got to Charlotte,” said Ekwonu, who prepped at local powerhouse Charlotte Providence Day School. “He just told me his expectations for me and the things that he wanted me to do. Think it was more clear when I just took a step back and looked at the whole body of work.”
A coach with 37 years of experience, including 12 in the NFL, Gilbert recalled the college scouting he did on Ekwonu before the 2022 draft. He was impressed then. He’s out to unlock his potential now.
“I think the biggest thing with Ickey is obviously consistency, and he’s a guy that wants it,” Gilbert said. “He works hard. And that’s the biggest thing for me that I’ve been working with him is just trying to be more consistent on a daily basis. He’s fun to work with, he’s got a great personality, and that’s part of it. But it’s the every day of just being consistent and telling him, hey, the great ones do the same thing over and over again, and they get really good at it. And I think that he’s starting to buy in.
“Are we there yet? No. “But I think he’s getting there for sure.”
With more efforts like sticking up for Mingo against the Bills, Ekwonu continues establishing himself as a growing locker-room leader.
Charlotte Providence Day School football coach Chad Grier speaks on former player Ikem Ekwonu’s second-year struggles with #NFL’s #panthers … pic.twitter.com/QRqQqBIjHg
— Jeff Hawkins (@WriterHawkins) June 4, 2024
Main Photo: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
