Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly was pulled from practice on Wednesday after being caught up in a pile, according to Joe Person of The Athletic.
Panthers head coach Ron Rivera said that Kuechly wanted to return, but he was held out for the remainder of the afternoon. Kuechly met with the medical team on the sideline, but his injury did not appear to be serious.
When asked if Kuechly would practice on Thursday, Rivera said, “We'll see.”
Kuechly is coming off a spectacular 2018 campaign in which he played all 16 games and racked up 130 tackles, a couple of sacks, an interception, a pair of forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and six passes defended en route to a Pro Bowl appearance and a First-Team All-Pro selection.
The 28-year-old, who played his collegiate football at Boston College, was originally selected by Carolina with the ninth overall pick of the 2012 NFL Draft. He immediately flashed his talent during his rookie year, leading the NFL with 165 tackles to go along with a sack, two interceptions, three fumble recoveries and seven passes defended.
Kuechly then made his first Pro Bowl and earned his first First-Team All-Pro selection the following year after totaling 166 tackles, a couple of sacks, four picks and seven passes defended. Overall, Kuechly has made six Pro Bowls while notching First-Team All-Pro honors five times, but between 2015 and 2016, he missed nine games due to concussions.
So, obviously, there is always going to be some concern whenever Kuechly takes a hit. Still, it seems like the Panthers are just exercising caution here more than anything else.
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