MIKE HART NEWS

Panthers seeking answers

We all know not to place too much meaning on the NFL exhibition season, which begins for the Carolina Panthers tonight against the Indianapolis Colts at Bank of America Stadium.

Game results are no indication of regular-season success or failure. The Panthers are 5-3 in their past two preseasons, neither of which led to a winning regular-season record, let alone a playoff berth.

Still, there are reasons to pay attention during the preseason. There are jobs to be won, wrinkles to be ironed out and -- most important -- players to keep healthy (remember the knee injury that wrecked receiver Patrick Jeffers' career in 2000?).

As usual, the starters will only play a series or two tonight. It won't be until the third exhibition, Aug. 23 at home against Washington, that the first-teamers will see sustained action.

Here are five things to watch for during the exhibition season, which continues Aug. 14 at Philadelphia, Aug. 23 against the Redskins and winds up Aug. 28 at Pittsburgh:

SWIPING AT JAKE'S ELBOW

Quarterback Jake Delhomme, who says he's fully recovered from offseason elbow surgery, is throwing as well as he ever has. But Delhomme admits he hasn't been hit yet in training camp, so he doesn't know how the elbow will react in a live game. And his ability to throw might not be the biggest test: Delhomme probably won't know how sturdy the elbow really is until a 300-pound defensive tackle grabs at it while Delhomme is following through.

DeANGELO'S JOB SECURITY

DeAngelo Williams figured he was the Panthers' starting running back when the team cut DeShaun Foster in the offseason -- at least until the team drafted Oregon's Jonathan Stewart in the first round. Williams has responded well in training camp, showing explosive bursts of speed and misdirection when he gets past the line of scrimmage. He's also taken on a leadership role in the locker room. Looks like he's serious about hanging on to that starting spot.

JASON CARTER'S CHANCE

If there's one player who might benefit from Steve Smith's suspension and Ryne Robinson's knee injury, it's receiver/returner Carter -- who's listed as third on the depth chart at wide receiver after Smith and Robinson. Carter will also likely return punts in Robinson's absence, giving him another shot at making the roster.

PEPPERS' SWITCH

The Panthers were proactive in dealing with Julius Peppers' mysterious problems of 2007, when he had a career-low 2.5 sacks. With Mike Rucker retiring, they moved Peppers from left defensive end to the right side, where Peppers says he's more comfortable. How he adjusts is a major storyline for this team, not just in the preseason but throughout the year.

LINEBACKER DEPTH

The Panthers' linebacking corps is so solid and talented that free-agent pickup Landon Johnson, who started 53 games for Cincinnati from 2003-07, can't crack the lineup. But he's had a strong camp and will give Na'il Diggs plenty of competition on the strong side. Rookie Dan Connor is also in the team's plans. He'll be out there a lot over the next few weeks.

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