The Panthers have brought tight ends in this offseason in bulk, to the point they had to drag chairs from the cafeteria to the position group’s meeting room just so everyone could sit.
“Maybe it’s the phaseout of Greg Olsen,” Greg Olsen joked.
That’s extremely unlikely, as the veteran tight end continues to improve on his receiving numbers, even as he reaches the age when others begin to slow down.
But the 31-year-old Olsen insists he has plenty of time remaining.
“The reality is I’m not 25 anymore,” Olsen said, via Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review. “But I’m also going to make it hard for these young guys to take time away from me. I don’t anticipate slowing down anytime soon. I anticipate playing for a good number of years remaining.”
The Panthers actually haven’t brought anyone in who is a threat to challenge Olsen, but they have acquired a lot of guys. They spent a seventh-round pick, signed two undrafted rookies, found one from a tryout and claimed a former practice-squader off waivers, giving them eight.
There are few guys in the league better to learn from, as Olsen has topped 1,000 yards each of the last two years, becoming the trusted target for Cam Newton even without a great cast of wide receivers around him.
He’s also been one of the more durable players in the league, with a games-played streak that sits at 142, 65 behind Cowboys tight end Jason Witten. Like Witten, he’s also become a mentor to younger teammates, saying that was something he learned in Chicago from Desmond Clark.
“I understand what that was like to have an older guy not look at you as a threat and look at you as somebody that they can help bring along. So I welcome that opportunity,” Olsen said. “I will always do everything in my power to help them improve, help them be the best that they can, and at the same time, make it really hard for them to beat me out.”
The way Olsen’s been playing lately, it’s going to be a good number of years before that happens.