The Carolina Panthers are an impressive team. They have far exceeded expectations this season, especially on offense with their hodge-podge wide receiver corps. Thanks to Cam Newton's MVP-caliber season, Carolina's offense has given the team enough juice to roll most opponents this season. But everyone still knows that the Panthers' No. 1 strength is their defense. Middle linebacker Luke Kuechly and breakout star cornerback Josh Norman steal all the headlines, but outside linebacker Thomas Davis is a key contributor to Carolina's success on that side of the ball as well.
Davis, who has spent his entire 10-year career with the Panthers, racked up 105 total tackles with 5.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and four interceptions this past season. You just don't find that type of all-around playmaking ability often. Unfortunately, Davis broke his forearm in the NFC Championship game, an injury that typically takes three to six months to recover from. But this is the Super Bowl and the veteran defender isn't going to miss this game for anything.
"Outside linebacker Thomas Davis practiced for the first time on Monday with a protective device over the right forearm that he broke in the NFC Championship Game," ESPN reports. "He said he will go with that protection unless the trainers come up with a better solution. He didn't seem concerned, but it will be interesting to watch through the week whether soreness develops as Davis gets in more work."
To a normal human being, playing in the Super Bowl with a broken forearm sounds incredibly painful and impossible. How will he be effective with just one arm? But if anyone can make it work, it's Davis. The 2005 first-rounder has torn his ACL in the same knee on three separate occasions. He is the first player in NFL history to ever return from such devastating setbacks and was still named First-team All-Pro this past year. Talk about heart and toughness. If anyone knows about fighting through the pain, it's this guy.
Davis may not be flying all over the field like he normally is on Sunday, but he'll figure out a way to contribute.
