Here at Cat Scratch Reader we have counted down the final 100 days leading up to the Carolina Panthers season opener by for at least the past ten years. We’ve always done this by highlighting the current player on the roster whose jersey number matches the day on the countdown. This year, we decided to change that up a bit by counting down our own list of the Top 100 Panthers of all time. This does not correspond to jersey number, does not need to be somebody who wore a jersey, and will in no way be controversial.
#73. Josh Norman
Norman was a fifth round pick by the Panthers in the 2012 NFL Draft, and he turned out to be the only real difference maker from that class aside from first rounder and Hall of Famer Luke Kuechly. The former Coastal Carolina standout made waves right off the bat, starting in 12 of the 16 games for the Panthers in his rookie season. While only notching one interception that year, he did manage seven passes defended to go with 73 tackles from the cornerback position. Unfortunately, his sophomore season was impacted by injuries, namely an MCL sprain in the first week of the season. That lingering issue combined with a few other small nicks and bruises limited his availability to just seven games in 2013.
He returned for another solid performance in 2014 similar to his rookie season, but it was the 2015 season that saw Josh Norman really come into his own, on and off the field. The headlines began before the season even started as Norman and star QB Cam Newton got into a training camp brawl. Norman intercepted a Newton pass in practice and returned it for a touchdown. Norman’s mouth was apparently running just as fast as his legs, prompting Newton to chase down the cornerback during his return. The iconic photo of a smiling Cam Newton looming over the scrappy and unyielding Josh Norman was a result of this particular interaction. That preseason fire from Norman (and Newton) spread to the regular season, engulfing opponents instead of teammates. Norman ended the regular season with 48 tackles, four interceptions (two returned for touchdowns), three forced fumbles and a couple fumble recoveries en route to a Pro Bowl selection, First Team All-Pro honors, and a fourth place finish in the DPOY vote (just behind that Luke Kuechly guy).
That 2015 Super Bowl run was the final season on his rookie contract, prompting the Panthers to apply the franchise tag. In one of the more head-scratching moves by former general manager Dave Gettleman, that tag was later rescinded after failing to reach a long term deal which made Norman an unrestricted free agent. He signed with Washington, where he spent four solid if unspectacular seasons. One year stints in Buffalo and San Francisco actually led to a one year reunion with the Panthers in 2022, but Norman only played in two games that year. His final season was another one year stint with the Bills before he retired from the NFL.
While the $14 million in cap the Panthers saved by moving on from Norman did help lock up young core players like defensive tackle Kawann Short, Norman is another in quite a long line of “what if” players who showed flashes of greatness in black and electric (at the time) blue. While the team did replace Norman with 2016 first round pick James Bradberry, they did lack a true one-two punch on the outside that could have made a huge difference. Imagining a world where Norman and Bradberry are on the outside with other players like Captain Munnerlyn and, later, Dante Jackson in the rotation really makes you wonder what could have been. Still, that one iconic season along with his incredible slew of highlight plays with the Panthers earns him this spot on our countdown.
