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closeCHARLOTTE — The Carolina Panthers know enough about Atlanta defensive end John Abraham to be wary, and they also know to look for him.
The Falcons have been using the NFL’s sack leader (6.0 in three games) from multiple spots, flopping him from side to side looking for the best pass-rush matchup.
Four sacks have come from the right end, where he’ll be matched with Panthers left tackle Jordan Gross. Two have come from the left, where he’ll work against rookie right tackle Jeff Otah.
“You have to (find him), and rightfully so,” quarterback Jake Delhomme said. “He’s a guy that will play both sides, they’ll stand him up and walk him around a good bit. We all know he’s at his best when he rushes the passer, and they send him, they let him rush.
“He is extremely powerful. And he’s quick. He closes in. You watch him on film, he can give a move to a tackle, take him inside, speed-rush him outside with those long arms. He’s a heck of a football player.”
Abraham’s dropped Delhomme four times in four games. He’s also forced two fumbles and batted down a pair of passes the last two years against the Panthers.
Coach John Fox said keeping an eye on Abraham was key this weekend, and the movement complicated matters a bit.
“They’ve got jersey numbers on, so you’ve got to find them,” Fox said. “It’s not like you don’t know where he is; he just doesn’t happen to be on the same side all of the time.”
Wherever he’s been, he’s been productive. He’s also hot lately, with eight sacks in his last four games and 16 in his last 18 games.
The former South Carolina star has 73.5 sacks since entering the league in 2000, tied for sixth among all players in that span.
“He’s a fierce competitor,” said fellow Gamecock Travelle Wharton. “It seems like he plays better as the game goes on, and at big moments. He steps up in big moments. He’s relentless against the run and the pass. We like to look at him as a pass rusher but he does a great job also with the running downs also.”
FAMILIAR FACE: Panthers defensive end Julius Peppers could be facing his fourth straight backup left tackle this week, as Todd Weiner is expected to replace injured rookie Sam Baker there for the Falcons. Baker hasn’t practiced all week because of a previous concussion, and is listed as questionable.
At least Peppers will know what he’s up against, having gone up against him often. “We know him,” Fox said.
Weiner has started at right tackle for the Falcons since 2002, and he and Peppers used to dance twice a year when Peppers was playing left end. In the 12 meetings, Peppers has 5.0 sacks and 21 pressures.
EXTRA POINTS: The Panthers listed nine players as probable on the injury report, meaning all of them should be able to play this weekend: Defensive ends Peppers (illness), Tyler Brayton (ankle) and Charles Johnson (thigh), linebackers Thomas Davis (ankle) and Na’il Diggs (shoulder), safety Chris Harris (knee), offensive linemen Gross (ankle) and Wharton (knee) and running back Jonathan Stewart (foot).
Wide receiver Ryne Robinson (knee) is listed as questionable, while broken-legged quarterback Matt Moore’s out for another few weeks. …
The Panthers didn’t even bother going outside in the rain Friday, taking their walk-through indoors. They worked an abbreviated schedule on the concourses of Bank of America Stadium before calling it a day.
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