NFLPA Investigating Circumstances Surrounding Nic Scourton’s Training Camp Injury

NFL training camp has officially begun around the league, and what started as a dream for some teams quickly turned into a nightmare for the Carolina Panthers. On their first day of camp, the Panthers lost a key member of their defense in second-year linebacker Nic Scourton. 

Scourton was injured in the opening session of training camp, diagnosed with a torn ACL and then placed on injured reserve, a tragic end to what looked to be a promising sophomore campaign for Scourton.

However, the book on Scourton’s injury isn’t closed just yet, as the NFLPA has opened an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the injury.

Open Investigation

After Nic Scourton tore his ACL on the first day of Panthers training camp, the NFLPA has begun an investigation to ensure all safety protocols were followed.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk wrote about the ongoing investigation in his July 25 article. 

“Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the NFL Players Association will review video of the practice to understand the circumstances,” Florio wrote. “If it was a non-contact fluke, that’s one thing. If the Panthers were straying beyond the limits of the acclimation period, it’s another.”

The video review will reveal whether the Panthers violated Article 23 of the collective bargaining agreement regarding the five-day on-field acclimation period at the beginning of training camp.

“The first day of a Club’s preseason training camp shall be limited to physical examinations, meetings, and classroom instruction; no on-field activities shall be permitted other than running and conditioning,” is what is outlined in Article 23.

According to Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer on Twitter, a Panthers spokesperson confirmed the team is cooperating with the investigation.

Canales’ History

Nic Scourton’s injury is not the first time that a team with Dave Canales on the coaching staff has been investigated for violation of practice protocols.

Joe Person of The Athletic noted that Canales was part of the Seattle Seahawks staff that was penalized multiple times for practice intensity violations.

‘The Seahawks were penalized at least three times for practice contact/intensity while Dave Canales was on Pete Carroll’s staff (2012, ’14 and ’16), Person wrote. “On the third instance, Carroll and SEA were both fined, and the Seahawks lost a 5th-rd pick and a week of OTA practices.”

Anthony Rizzuti of Panthers Wire, in his July 26 article, wrote about Canales’ response to his Seattle history being brought up again.

“Yeah, we had a couple, just in Seattle,” Canales said. “We had a couple situations where they were pretty critical of what we were doing in our practices. We had to adjust, and there might have been some fines thrown out there.”

The Panthers once again found themselves on the wrong end of a training camp injury as rookie wide receiver Chris Brazzell II suffered an LCL tear in his knee at practice on Wednesday, which could sideline him for up to eight weeks.

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