The Carolina Panthers had themselves another contentious round of training camp on Monday.
According to the feet on the ground in Charlotte this morning, a “big” fight involving center Luke Fortner and cornerback Mike Jackson broke out during practice. Per Joe Person of The Athletic, the scuffle was ignited after the offense took exception to a hit on running back Jonathon Brooks.
That offensive lineman was Fortner, who head coach Dave Canales spoke about after the heated session.
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“He’s a veteran,” Canales stated. “And I’m sensing, getting to know Luke—he’s got a real justice streak about him and he just wants things to be the right way.
“Watching that emerge is a cool thing—loyalty to his teammates and all that. Love the fact that he wants to make sure he’s in there and guys aren’t just standing there getting in any type of verbal or physical altercations.”
Fortner, now in the middle of his first summer in Carolina, signed on to a one-year deal worth up to $4.75 million during the spring. The Panthers added Fortner following the loss of previous starting center Cade Mays, who went off to Detroit on a three-year, $25 million pact.
Canales later told reporters about his talk with the team after the skirmish.
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“‘Hey, these are the couple moments that I think led to the frustration. Here’s how we can do better,” he said to his players. “‘I don’t want you guys backing off. I love this. And offense—you don’t get to complain about getting hit. It’s football.'”
Well, the football continued—and it was Jackson and the defense who seemingly got in the last shot of the day on quarterback Bryce Young and the offense . . .
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Big fight breaks out at Panthers training camp on Monday
