Evander Holyfield tweeted a congratulations to his son, Georgia Bulldogs RB Elijah Holyfield, after he signed with the Carolina Panthers. Elijah signed as an undrafted free agent.
The best part about going undrafted for Elijah Holyfield is he got to choose his destination. The Carolina Panthers are a great opportunity for Elijah Holyfield because of their runningback situation.
The Panthers current starting RB is dual threat stud Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey played nearly 100% of snaps last season for the Panthers. As the engine to their offense, McCaffrey will demand a high snap count again in 2019.To put it into perspective, C.J. Anderson, who turned into a valuable piece in the Rams’ Super Bowl run, got only 24 carries in nine games for Carolina last season. Despite this, Carolina may want to limit the wear and tear on McCaffrey with a back up running back for short yardage situations. The Panthers also heavily utilize QB Cam Newton in the running game.
Elijah Hood, Cameron Artis-Payne, and Jordan Scarlett a 5th round draft pick out of Florida will all battle Holyfield for a roster spot or two. Ultimately, Holyfield will be aiming to make the roster and build his role from there.
