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Jarrett ready for this year

CarolinaPanthers8789

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CarolinaPanthers8789 Newbie

CarolinaPanthers8789

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Source: http://www.thestate.com/sports/story/826279.html?RSS=sports

The past two years, all everyone has heard about was the potential of Dwayne Jarrett.

This year, it is time to prove what he is going to be about, one way or another.

The Carolina Panthers have gotten 16 catches in 16 games from their 2007 second-rounder, who was beset by barriers external and self-imposed. The guy who caught 41 touchdowns in three seasons at Southern Cal is still waiting for his first pro score.

“Yeah, you always try to get better every year,” Jarrett said. “Last year is done. Each year you try to redeem yourself and get better. The NFL is like ‘What have you done for me lately?,’ so you just have to keep working at it.”

The working is the first sign that things might be changing. He was with the starters while Muhsin Muhammad was away from the voluntary summer school practices. And when he was on the field, he looked more focused.

He was called out for cruising through his rookie year, and the drunk driving arrest the following offseason did not help. Last year, he was taking things more seriously, but found himself stuck behind free agent pickup D.J. Hackett, who was cut after one season.

“All I can do is go out there and play ball,” Jarrett said. “Coaches, I think they have trust in me to go out there and make plays, and that’s what I’ve been doing.”

They have had some degree of trust throughout, with quarterback Jake Delhomme in particular singing his praises. But Delhomme said it is time for Jarrett to make good on the promise they have seen.

“I think there were flashes,” Delhomme said when asked what they saw in Jarrett. “You’ve got to remember, I came in undrafted and my signing bonus was 40 bucks to pay for my gas to go to New Orleans. This is a 20-year-old kid who got a very nice signing bonus. Let’s put it in perspective. Put many of us in that situation, and I don’t know how I would have reacted. Then you come here and you have a Steve Smith and last year we get Moose back and we have a D.J. Hackett. So it was probably difficult and I don’t know the learning process for him.”

There have been moments with Jarrett, those flashes Delhomme talked about. His time will still be somewhat limited because the Panthers are still a run-first team, and Muhammad’s skill as a blocker will keep him on the field on early downs.

But he knows his chance has come, and what he makes of it is up to him.

“It’s so much easier, just in terms of preparation, learning the playbook, just going out there knowing what you’re supposed to do,” Jarrett said of his current practice routine. “The game slows down that much more, so it’s like a learning process all the time, but it’s definitely easier than my first two years.”

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mantal Newbie

mantal

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Not interested in anything he says. Time to produce, mouth movement not needed.

He did produce when he actually got on the field last year and got thrown the ball. Yes, that wasn't very often but it still happened. We will see, but I've come around...

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