CHARLOTTE — (WLOS) – Organized Team Activities, or OTA’s, is a voluntary portion of the NFL calendar. On Tuesday, new Carolina Panther Rico Dowdle present at practice Tuesday, getting acclimated being back in the Carolina’s.
“Back here at home now, close to family and friends. Definitely feel at home. Dropped my kids off two weekends with my mom. Definitely feel at home from that aspect,” said the new Panthers running back. Rico Dowdle, a former standout at A.C. Reynolds before moving on South Carolina, went undrafted to the Dallas Cowboys in 2020 where he’d been until joining Carolina this spring. Last season in 2024, he rushed for over 1,000 yards, marking his best year in quite some time.
“That was my first time getting 1,000 yards since high school. Any college, any pro year, definitely felt good being able to do that.”
Dowdle, on a one-year $6.5 million dollar contract with the Panthers, recognizes how journeyed his path to now has been.
“Keep going, I hit adversity, had injuries in high school, broke my leg. I’ve had a couple of injuries in the NFL, broke my hip my second season, just fighting through adversity. That’s one thing for me, I’ve always been able to do well, when I’ve had a set back, I’ve come back stronger.”
Dowdle, one of several new skill position pieces added to the Panthers roster to surround third-year quarterback Bryce Young, who is now entering a returning system under second-year head coach Dave Canales.
“It’s part of the process. It’s everyone’s first day. You’re going to see a little bit of – it’ human nature – it’s a new environment, you figure stuff out. It’s been great, just being able to start at a higher level. Being able to focus on growth rather than learning. Focus on knowing what’s expected, little things that you have done well and continue to do well. Things that you can improve on,” said Young.