Panthers OL has moved on from knee surgery, position-switch talk. He wants us to, too

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Lean in and look past his smile, and you can probably hear it in his voice.

Austin Corbett isn’t hiding it.

The veteran offensive lineman has gone through an offseason where his name — for the first time in the veteran offensive lineman’s tenure with the Carolina Panthers — has been associated with questions that have kernels of doubt.

Will he be able to transition from right guard to center seamlessly?

After back-to-back season-ending knee injuries, is he fully healthy?

And ... well ... he’s ready to move on.

“I get that everybody wants to make a big deal out of it,” Corbett told reporters Saturday morning, just after the Panthers’ “Back Together Again” event in Bank of America Stadium.

“I get it,” he continued, referencing his offseason. “But it’s literally my job.”

The aforementioned questions are rooted in more-than-half truths. After all, it’s true that the 28-year-old lineman and 2018 second-round pick was starting at right guard for the 2021 Los Angeles Rams when they won the Super Bowl, and that he’s played the position with aplomb since coming to Carolina in 2022. It’s also true that he had knee injuries in back-to-back seasons that prevented him from walking off the field healthy Week 18.

But it’s also true that Corbett has played all five positions on the line in college and as a pro . It’s also true that he’s been the Panthers’ emergency center in case the now-departed Bradley Bozeman went down mid-game. And it’s also correct that the “back-to-back season-ending knee injuries” needs context.

Corbett provided that context Saturday — and did so with a passion that, if you listen closely, sounds a lot like he’s walking around with a chip on his shoulder.

“Obviously everybody keeps saying two season-ending knee injuries,” Corbett said. “People forget, I started 17 games that year. OK, great, I missed the second half of the last game of the year. Like, we’re fine. We rehabbed.

“And everyone saying the MCL (last year) being a significant injury . It’s a very superficial surgery, not invasive like the ACL was (at the end of 2022). It’s a very routine maintenance job. We’re fine guys.”

He went on: “I’m gonna be out there. It’s gonna be fun. We’re gonna go play ball. I’ve always been ready and prepped being the emergency center. So now we’re just doing it, and it’s fine.”

Newly minted, offensive-minded head coach Dave Canales expects the offensive line to be “fine,” too.

Better than fine, even.

The Panthers are coming off a 2-15 season riddled with flaws. The team’s most public shortcoming was the offense’s lifelessness, and a lot of that blame was put squarely on the offensive line — for not giving rookie Bryce Young enough time to throw (62 sacks), for not paving the way for a stout run game, which is what the same line was known for in 2022.

The team prioritized upgrading the interior offensive line in response. The Panthers signed Robert Hunt, a top right guard in free agency, to a five-year, $100 million deal. They went out and acquired Damien Lewis as a left guard, too , with the plan to move Corbett to the center spot — where his agility and second-level blocking might better be used.

The result?

Too early to tell. The team won’t put on pads until Tuesday, Canales told reporters Saturday.

But early returns?

“I’m really happy with where they’re at right now,” Canales said of the team’s interior offensive line. “WIth Damien, Austin and Robert, just right up in the middle, you can feel it in the run game. There’s good, lateral movement when we need it. There’s good vertical push when we need it. The pocket stays firm on the inside. So I’m really excited about those three just communicating and working together.”

Canales added on praise about Corbett, specifically.

“Just good command,” he said. “Good command of the center position, and he’s as much a part of the offense running smoothly as Bryce. As they go up there, they make their calls, they get everything started on a good foot, and then just the timing in which we do it and how we communicated, I’m really excited about.”

Corbett was excited about a bunch of things Saturday.

He called Hunt and Lewis “massive men” who can “move very quickly,” adding that “it’s nice to be able to throw up some double teams with just some giants who can play like that.” He said he’s seen some growth out of Young. He said that he loves how Canales has harped on running the ball — and how Canales “truly is just a man of his word” and that “throughout this entire training camp so far, he’s not lying.”

Corbett is also undoubtedly excited about getting on pads, getting on the field — helping this retooled offense in a way that puts certain offseason questions to rest.

Editor’s note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated Corbett’s age. He is 28 years old, as is written above.