Carolina Panthers: Daryl Williams injury puts pressure on Taylor Moton

On the first day of padded practice, key Carolina Panthers offensive lineman Daryl Williams suffered an injury to his right MCL.

Training sessions for the Carolina Panthers didn’t get off to the greatest of starts as what seems to be a major injury has already hit the team. Offensive tackle Daryl Williams went down on Saturday with what seems to be a knee injury. Protecting the quarterback is an important part of any team’s offensive plans and Williams was a key factor for the Panthers. The team is waiting with bated breath to find out how extensive this injury is and the ramifications it will play to this front line.

According to multiple reports, Williams suffered the injury after a play in which he was attempting to engage Zach Moore. Additional contact from Vernon Butler sent Williams falling backward and he immediately grabbed at his knee, screaming in pain. Players on the field dropped down in kneeling position as he was carted off for further evaluations. Those evaluations would reveal that Williams suffered a torn MCL and the team has not revealed when they would expect him back.

“We are beginning the early stages of rehabilitation, and there is currently no timetable for his return,” head athletic trainer Ryan Vermillion as reported by David Newton of ESPN.

The official ruling of the injury is a dislocation of his right patella and a tearing of the medial collateral ligament in his right knee. The wording was announced later Saturday afternoon and the team has not ruled Williams out for the year.

Panthers quarterback, Cam Newton, walked away from where trainers were working on Williams, obviously shaken up by what happened.

“I’m extremely optimistic right now and I hope we are overreacting right now,” Newton said after the practice session (video via ESPN). “You never want to see a player like that go down. You hate to see certain things like that. But I believe and I’m hoping everything will be alright.”

Williams was entering the final year of his contract with Carolina and negotiations were under way for an extension. He was replaced by Taylor Moton, who backed up Williams last season. Moton appeared in all 16 games last season, but did not start any. Moton had improved so much that he was competing for a starting position as the left guard. Rivera was pleased with the way that Morton stepped into the positon after such a dramatic moment.

“We will keep our fingers crossed,” Rivera said. “In the meantime, Taylor is going to have to step up and take advantage of the opportunity to get better.”

The Carolina Panthers have suffered through many seasons in which multiple members of the starting offensive line were taken out due to injury. Coming into this season they’ve added some depth to this area, but it’s still disheartening to see when a sudden injury hits during the first pads practice of the year. Both Williams and Moton had shown such improvement in the past that this could have been an opportunity to get them both into the starting lineup. Instead, the franchise and fans alike will have to wait to see the full outcome of this injury.