‘Superhero’ Chinn wears many capes with Panthers’ D

PHOTO | CAROLINA PANTHERS

Carolina Panthers coaches intend to put Jeremy Chinn’s size and skill set to use at multiple linebacker and secondary positions in their defensive alignments.

Before the 2023 NFL season commences, Jeremy Chinn may need a supersized corner locker.  

Panthers linebackers coach Peter Hansen calls Chinn an inter-changeable asset for a unit altering its identity into a 3-4 base defense.

“We see him as a superhero,” Hansen said via Zoom call with reporters. “We just don’t know which cape he’ll wear from day to day.”  

Chinn, a four-year veteran, has experience playing free and strong safety, slot cornerback and linebacker. He often lined up during nickel packages and could see additional time in dime alignments.   

Will the secondary coaches be forced to grapple with their peers for Chinn’s services?   

“I just feel like everything in my life has really just been aligned,” Chinn told the team website after OTAs last week. “And I feel like that definitely has translated for things on the field. Just because I feel like, you know, things off the field are just so in order – I’m at a really good spot. I feel really good mentally. That translates.“

During last week’s first practice, Chinn worked out with the defensive backs, displaying his range on a deep throw by rookie quarterback Bryce Young.  

During an 11-on-11 drill, Young attempted his lone downfield throw, but it was into double coverage. Chinn tipped the pass aside, with Vonn Bell playing deep.  

“Height, weight, speed, and when you actually see him do things on the field, it’s like, ‘Whoa,’ I didn’t think he could do that,” Hanson said.   

Chinn’s chief OTA assignment will be with the defensive backs, but as the players and coaches better adjust to first-year defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero’s new 3-4 alignments, his role could morph to include different position groups.  

Chinn’s regular-season responsibilities remain TBD.  

“We’ll see,” Hansen said. “At this point, we haven’t gotten that far but we’ll see what the future holds.”  

Speaking after the first OTA session, coach Frank Reich addressed Chinn’s ability to be an active disruptor when he plays in the box. His versatility will be utilized.  

“He’s really just embracing his role,” head coach Frank Reich said earlier in the week. “It’s going to be different for him. And talking to E.J. (Evero) the other day about some other possibilities and I know it’s offseason, but we’re really excited about how he’s going to fit into our scheme. After talking to E.J., there’s probably even more roles for him than what we thought.”

 
As the Panthers’ defense moves away from 4-3 looks, the coaching staff could face two-deep issues, fielding personnel without ideal body types at different positions, creating potential miss-matches. It’s one area the coaching staff will look to minimize during OTAs.     

“I’m doing a few different things,” Chinn said. “(With) a lot of things, I’ve also been in that position as well before. So I’m super excited, really, how they continue to utilize me and continue to just kind of move me around.”

Over his first three seasons, Chinn has collected 292 tackles and earned league-wide rookie recognition for back-to-back fumble recovery touchdowns against Minnesota in 2020. He registered 70 tackles in 11 starts last season.  

“The thing I love about the guys we have right now is they are pros who have been there and done it and done it the right way,” safeties coach Bert Watts said.  

At 6-foot-3 and 220 pounds, Chinn is a competitive ’tweener who is big and tough enough to approach the line of scrimmage, but nimble enough to drop into coverage.  
“We think very highly of him,” Evero said. “He’s a weapon that we’re definitely going to try to utilize.  

“I don’t want to get too much into the specifics, but we value his skillset. He’s a guy that can do a lot of different things. You just got to have him on the field and we’re going to figure that out as we work.”  

 
The Panthers’ defensive plan will certainly evolve over the preseason, but Watts said Chinn’s versatility “makes you excited … any scheme (we’ll be) ready to activate that guy at any time.”  

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