First-round safety Thomas Davis, the 14th overall player chosen in 2005 and a versatile defender who is expected to make an immediate impact, agreed to a contract with the Panthers. The former University of Georgia star will sign a five-year contract worth $10.6 million, and the deal includes $7.97 million in guaranteed money. Davis will report on time to camp on Friday evening and be set to practice Saturday morning when the Panthers take the field for the first time. Davis split his time in college between linebacker, and safety but the Panthers will use him at the latter position. League scouts were split before the draft about what position best suited Davis, an explosive athlete and big hitter.

Stephen Davis will not be ready to practice at the outset of the Carolina Panthers training camp, and the club is expected to place him on the active/physically unable to perform list on Friday. Team officials have conceded that Davis, who played in just two games in 2004 and who underwent the controversial microfracture surgery on his right knee, will not pass the club physical upon reporting to camp. By placing him on the active/PUP list, the Panthers then have the option of removing Davis at any time in camp, once he passes a physical. Carolina reports to camp at Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C., Davis' hometown, on Friday and the team's first practice is Saturday morning. "It's something that was anticipated," said general manager Marty Hurney, who said that Davis has not suffered any setbacks in rehabilitation, and is on pace for recovery. "It will give him some more time to rehab."

The Carolina Panthers singed rookie offensive lineman Evan Mathis two a three-year contract on Saturday. The 6-foot-5, 304-pound Mathis was the 15th player selected in the third round of this year's NFL draft and is expected to compete for a starting job at right guard with Tutan Reyes in training camp. "Evan is very excited about getting this done and out of the way," Evans agent Kirk Wood said. "We would have actually liked to get it done a while ago, but sometimes it takes time. But he's very excited about camp."

The Carolina Panthers have come to terms with their fifth-round selection from the 2005 draft, linebacker Adam Seward. The contract is not yet signed, however, Panthers GM Marty Hurney confirmed the three-year agreement is in place. Seward, who is 6-foot-2 and 248 pounds, played at UNLV, where he set school and Mountain West Conference records with 433 tackles. He made a league-leading 121 tackles as a senior, when he was second-team all-Mountain West. He was a first team selection as a junior.

The Carolina Panthers signed offensive lineman Geoff Hangartner and wide receiver Hugo Lira on Monday. Hangartner started 36 consecutive games at center and tackle for the Aggies. As a senior in 2004, he moved from center to tackle and earned first-team All-Big 12 honors. Lira, 26, has played three NFL Europe seasons. As a national player, Lira gets an exemption on the Panthers training camp roster until the final cut down before the start of the regular season.

With contract negotiations stalled, linebacker Dan Morgan and his agent are ready to get things underway. The two of them do not see a need for any type of holdout. "I'm not all that thrilled with where we are now," said Drew Rosenhaus, Morgan's agent. "We're pretty far apart; there's a big difference of opinion in respect to what the two sides think this contract should be." "Once camp begins, if we don't have a deal in place, the odds start to diminish on getting one done," Rosenhaus said. "We've had some negotiations but we're still pretty far apart."

They were supposed to get one in the draft, however, could not find the right value. Now the Carolina Panthers are looking to pick up a quality free agent. They may make a run at Rod Garner when he is eventually released by the Washington Redskins, or the could take a chance on Roscoe Crosby, a supplemental draft applicant with promise. Crosby worked out for nearly 20 teams Friday, including the Panthers, and looked good until leg cramps shortened his audition. He did run a pair of 40-yard dashes, posting times in the low- to mid-4.4-second range. Combined with his big-play potential and athletic 6-foot-2, 218-pound frame, he's an intriguing prospect.