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Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson has long said he wanted his young franchise to emulate the family-run Pittsburgh Steelers.
AP PHOTO
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson has long said he wanted his young franchise to emulate the family-run Pittsburgh Steelers.
As the teams meet to close the exhibition schedule Thursday, the Panthers have plenty of catching up to do on and off the field.
An injury-ravaged preseason full of missed tackles, few touchdowns and no wins was overshadowed this week by the stunning resignations of Richardson’s two sons from high-ranking jobs with the team.
The rift in the family leaves no clear successor to the 73-year-old owner seven months removed from a heart transplant. And while Richardson hired TCU athletic director Danny Morrison as team president Wednesday, he’s yet to explain the resignations or his future plans with the team.
The Steelers, meanwhile, remain the definition of front-office stability — and appear in much better shape on the field, too.
Coming off its record sixth Super Bowl title, Pittsburgh, in its 76th year under three generations of ownership by the Rooney family, seems ready for the regular season.
Ben Roethlisberger, recovered from a right foot injury, led two scoring drives in a 17-0 win over the Bills on Saturday. The Steelers’ defense looks as dominating as ever, too.
With the Steelers to play the regular-season opener Sept. 10 against Tennessee, don’t expect to see the starters for more than a series or two Thursday. The night belongs to the fringe players trying to make the 53-man regular-season roster and the competition for backup jobs on the offensive line.
“There is no question their appearance is going to be a short one. That is the nature of it,” coach Mike Tomlin said of the first units. “They are going to have some teammates fighting until the bitter end to play well and make this football team. Those guys understand that process.”
In other games Thursday night, it’s Detroit at Buffalo, Philadelphia at the New York Jets, Baltimore at Atlanta, Indianapolis at Cincinnati, the New York Giants at New England, Washington at Jacksonville, Cleveland at Chicago, Green Bay at Tennessee, Kansas City at St. Louis, Miami at New Orleans, Arizona at Denver, and Oakland at Seattle.
Eagles at Jets
Michael Vick will get plenty of action at quarterback, without most of the gimmicks. He’ll probably start the second half, but could see action earlier.
Browns at Bears
Presumably, Cleveland will finally settle its quarterback race between Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson. Chicago has no such worries with Jay Cutler behind center, but the Bears have to settle questions at wide receiver.
Colts at Bengals
Cincinnati is hopeful of getting QB Carson Palmer back from a high ankle sprain so he can work off any rust after missing the last two exhibition games. The Colts will use the game as the final chance for either veteran Jim Sorgi or rookie Curtis Painter to win the job as Peyton Manning’s primary backup.
Giants at Patriots
Replay of the 2008 Super Bowl? Hardly. Most starters will get the night off.
The Giants are trying to unravel the muddled wide receiver position, and the Patriots look to improve their performance in the secondary, which allowed some big plays by Washington last week.
Dolphins at Saints
Reggie Bush could miss his third straight preseason game with a strained right calf, while fellow running back Pierre Thomas is expected to sit out for the second time in as many games for New Orleans. Miami could complete an undefeated preseason with a victory.
Packers at Titans
The Titans, who open the season in a week against the league’s best 3-4 defense, Pittsburgh’s, get a third straight look at such an alignment in the Packers. “A lot of the schemes are similar to what we’ll do against Pittsburgh,” quarterback Kerry Collins said.
Cardinals at Broncos
Arizona has issues with its offensive line and is looking for defensive improvement, too. Denver has problems everywhere, is down to its third-string quarterback and is dealing with recalcitrant (and suspended) receiver Brandon Marshall.
Raiders at Seahawks
The Seahawks have lost three-fifths of their starting offensive line and 2007 Pro Bowl cornerback Marcus Trufant to injuries already this summer. Not a promising indoctrination for new coach Jim Mora.
Lions at Bills
No T.O. again for Buffalo, even though his sore toe has healed.
“We’re going to be smart about it,” Terrell Owens said. “We’ve got the big opener to the season against the Patriots, so that’s where my focus is right now.”
Ravens at Falcons
Newly acquired cornerback Tye Hill will be busy for Atlanta.
“Tye will get a big, quick introduction into what we’re trying to do defensively. He’s way, way behind for a guy walking in,” coach Mike Smith said. “I’ve told him he needs to be patient, and we’re going to be very patient with him and hopefully get him up to speed as quickly as possible.”
Redskins at Jaguars
Coach Jack Del Rio’s first-teamers aren’t expected to get as much downtime for Jacksonville, 0-3 in preseason.
Chiefs at Rams
The Chiefs need to figure out who’ll open the season at quarterback. Starter Matt Cassel is out with an injury they won’t talk about and neither Brodie Croyle nor Tyler Thigpen has distinguished himself as a clear-cut favorite to take his place. Plus, coach Todd Haley fired offensive coordinator Chan Gailey on Monday and will take over an offense that’s scored two touchdowns all preseason.