PANTHERS-TOUGH TOLBERT

FB Tolbert’s versatility paying off for Panthers
CHARLOTTE — Panthers fullback Mike Tolbert says he’s used to defenders underestimating him when he has the ball in his hands.

He’s hoping they continue to do so.

The squatty 5-foot-9, 245-pound Tolbert doesn’t look like he’d be tough to tackle or particularly fast. But Tolbert’s low center of gravity and surprising speed has made him a valuable and versatile commodity for the Panthers (9-3), who beat TampaBay on Sunday for their eighth straight victory.

He says with a laugh that defenders “see a guy that is short and fat and they think, ‘Oh yeah, we got him no problem.'” But Tolbert adds that, “Then they are like ‘Whoa, where did he get those feet from? I didn’t know he was that fast.'”

The Panthers play at the New Orleans Saints on Sunday night.

The Saints lost to the Seattle Seahawks Monday night which clinched the NFC West for Seattle. It also put Carolina and New Orleans in a tie at 9-3 for the NFC South.

The Panthers and Saints will meet two times in the next three weeks.

Related Stories
‹
Five Carolina Panthers Players Will Feature In NFL Pro Bowl
Linebacker Luke Kuechly, defensive end Greg Hardy, center Ryan Kalil, fullback Mike Tolbert and quarterback Cam Newton will all be making the trip to Hawaii Jan. 26.
Quartet of Carolina Panthers Players Selected to AP All-Pro Team
Fullback Mike Tolbert, linebacker Luke Kuechly and center Ryan Kalil made the first team while defensive end Greg Hardy placed on the second team.
UNC TE Coach John Lilly Headed to NFL; Freddie Kitchens Hired as Replacement
The coaching carousel isn’t done with the UNC football team just yet. Last week, it was announced UNC tight ends coach John Lilly would be leaving the program to take the same role with the NFL’s Carolina Panthers. Lilly had been a member of the coaching staff since February of 2020. On Monday, Inside Carolina […]
Chansky's Notebook: Steep Learning Curve
David Tepper proved that money doesn’t make you smart. The billionaire owner of the Carolina Panthers made his money in the financial world. But it took him until the very end of his press conference after firing coach Matt Rhule to admit that he has a lot to learn about pro football. Tepper had reason […]
Chansky's Notebook: Man With No Plan
Apparently, it’s true that money doesn’t make you smart. David Tepper must have known what he was doing in accumulating a net worth of more than $1 billion (that is a million dollars multiplied by one thousand if anyone is counting). But what he has done with that money in the sports world is a […]
Chansky's Notebook: The Darnold? Bad!
What were the Panthers thinking with their quarterback moves? The two early NFL games on local TV Sunday had to have viewers and fans scratching their collective heads. On CBS, the Carolina Panthers and their new quarterback Sam Darnold were embarrassed by New England and a defense that not only harassed Darnold into 3 interceptions […]
Chansky's Notebook: A True Calling
From sponsors to owners, the NFL has a real chance at change. Doesn’t this nationwide protest supporting Black Lives Matter and against police brutality feel different than all the others that have come before? And the NFL has a real chance to make changes stick. The Carolina Panthers took a bold step when they severed […]
Julius Peppers Selected to NFL All-Decade Team for 2010's
One of the greatest players to ever put on a UNC football jersey–defensive end Julius Peppers–earned yet another prestigious honor to his career full of them on Monday, when he was selected to the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 2010’s. Peppers, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers–finished […]
Carolina Panthers Sign Former UNC Safety Tre Boston to 3-Year Extension
The Carolina Panthers and former UNC safety Tre Boston agreed this past Thursday to a three-year deal worth $18 million, with Boston set to make $9.5 million in the first year. Boston was a fourth round pick by the Panthers in the 2014 NFL Draft coming out of UNC. He spent his first three NFL […]
UNC Football Hires Kevin Donnalley as Director of High School Relations
The UNC football program and head coach Mack Brown announced Monday that they have hired former Tar Heel great Kevin Donnalley as their director of high school relations Donnalley had spent the last four seasons as the director of student-athlete development at Charlotte. He also played 13 seasons in the NFL as an offensive lineman […]
›