Corey Brown: Faster than last year?

[Mr. Scot]

So says Panthers.com

Brown's instincts fueled his offseason plan. As an undersized wideout, he knew he needed to get bigger and stronger to maintain an NFL career.

"I worked on gaining weight and keeping that weight," said Brown, who now weighs 185 pounds, up from 180 last year.

But for speedy players with a slender build like Brown's, the questions become how much can be gained and how much should be gained.

"It's about getting enough lean muscle mass so you are able to absorb the punishment," strength and conditioning coach Joe Kenn explained. "He had to gain (weight). He can carry mid-180s consistently and not have any detriment."

And he can add that weight without losing speed. In fact, he's faster.

"Which means he's gotten stronger," Kenn said. "He's a conscientious kid. The weight he's put on is quality muscle mass. That's what you want."

Bigger, faster Brown has more to prove

More from the same article...

Last year, when wide receiver Corey Brown arrived at Bank of America Stadium for the first time as an undrafted rookie, he seemed a bit agitated.

He was getting fitted for equipment with the other undrafted rookies, and it was obvious he didn't feel he belonged with that group.

He firmly believed he should have been drafted. So, from the moment he arrived, he played like he was. He acted like he was a high draft pick, too – full of confidence with a bit of swagger. He knew he belonged, and he proved it.

I like the chip on the shoulder.

His speed became a critical piece of the Panthers offense, so much so that Brown's emergence forced veteran wide receiver Jason Avant out of the equation.

There was a lot of speculation about the reasons behind Avant's departure (especially after some of his comments). But if this is true, the team said goodbye to Avant primarily because they thought Brown was better (and obviously, he's cheaper).

During this year's offseason program, we saw more of what we saw at the end of last season – Brown getting behind the defense and quarterback Cam Newton launching passes into his waiting hands.

"We are definitely picking up where we left off last year," Brown said. "We have a good relationship off the field, and you can tell that on the field with the way we're clicking.

"He trusts me," Brown added, "and I trust him."

If you know the pro game, then you know those words are extremely important.

And with that trust established, Brown's game has expanded. He's improved his intermediate route running and has been crisper in and out of his breaks. Veteran tight end Greg Olsen has taken notice.

"Last year at this time, Corey was a guy where we said, 'Wow, he's fast.' This year he is a receiver," Olsen said. "The guy can play. He's not just a one-trick pony, a guy who is just going to run deep. He has a lot of natural instinct to him. He has a good feel."

Olsen isn't the kind to just throw compliments around. Hearing him talk about Brown being improved is highly encouraging.

I think if there's a common theme running through this year's receiving corps, it's people that Cam Newton trusts.  We've heard that he trusts Benjamin, Bersin, obviously Olsen, and you'd have to believe that Newton's feelings played a part in Ted Ginn being back here.  Throw in that OTAs gave Devin Funchess a chance to show that Newton could trust him as well.

And as the article mentions, he trusts Corey Brown, who - to quote the old Six Million Dollar Man intro - is "better, stronger, faster" than last season.

This coming season keeps looking more interesting by the day.

[Jeremy Igo]

Was evident from the very first practice to anyone that paid attention. 

[t96]

Clear-cut #3 WR.

[the butch]

Big steal for us. He came along nicely at the end of the year. Impressed that he is putting in the work and improving. If there is one thing we need it's guys that are hungry.

[Jeremy Igo]

Big steal for us. 

Well, some of us. 

 

Other, more vocal posters here, predicted he would not even make the team this season.

 

Those huddlers have been quiet as of late. 

[t96]

Well, some of us. 

 

Other, more vocal posters here, predicted he would not even make the team this season.

 

Those huddlers have been quiet as of late. 

[cough]top dawg[cough]

[Mol3m4n]

You should change top dawg's name to "downtown Corey Brown ".

[juliosantos]

Guy works hard and got great talent . No clue how he went undrafted we got a steal

[The NFL Shield At Midfield]

Well, some of us. 

 

Other, more vocal posters here, predicted he would not even make the team this season.

 

Those huddlers have been quiet as of late. 

i'm out of the loop so fill me in

stephen hill is still on track to take the 3rd receiver spot right

[t96]

i'm out of the loop so fill me in

stephen hill is still on track to take the 3rd receiver spot right

I hear he's on track to overtake the lazy, overweight Benjamin for the #1 spot.

[arbnranger]

I hear he's on track to overtake the lazy, overweight Benjamin for the #1 spot.

That's the word on the skreet.

[PandaPancake]

Was evident from the very first practice to anyone that paid attention. 

Sorry, I wasn't paying attention. What's going on?

[Carolina Cajun]

Clear-cut #3 WR.

I think he could be interchangeable at #2 with Funchess, both possess different skill sets, but both can move around and play inside or out.  If he keeps up his play, we'll have a #1 and  a potential 2a and 2b.

[MountainHeel66]

I think he could be interchangeable at #2 with Funchess, both possess different skill sets, but both can move around and play inside or out.  If he keeps up his play, we'll have a #1 and  a potential 2a and 2b.

We keep this up and it will be more like 1a, 1b, 1c.