CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Insurance.
That’s what 35-year-old cornerback Charles "Peanut" Tillman could be for the Carolina Panthers.
In case you missed it, Tillman told NOLA.com this past weekend during a football camp with former Chicago Bears teammate Matt Forte in Slidell, Louisiana, that “I just want to play for Carolina.’’
Tillman, who spent 12 seasons with the Bears, started 12 games for Carolina in 2015 before suffering a torn ACL in the regular-season finale.
But do the Panthers want -- or need -- Tillman?
Carolina coach Ron Rivera, who coached Tillman in Chicago from 2004-06, said repeatedly during offseason workouts that there was no urgency to bring in a veteran cornerback.
“I guess if we did something, it would be later on,’’ he said. “But right now we’re set.’’
Perhaps that’s because Rivera knows he has Tillman in his back pocket if he needs him. Rivera loves Tillman. He said repeatedly last season how much Tillman helped the team not only as a player, but as a teacher.
Tillman specifically taught players the "Peanut Punch," his unique way of knocking the football out of the hands of ball carriers. Carolina had 24 forced fumbles, tied for the second most in the NFL, last season.
Pro Bowl cornerback Josh Norman, now with the Washington Redskins, had a career-best three forced fumbles last season.
That Norman no longer is with the team after having his franchise tag rescinded is a big reason the Panthers need insurance.
That Tillman wants to play for no other team but Carolina is no surprise. He said that during the Super Bowl run as he stayed active around practice during the playoffs despite his injury.
But Tillman admitted during Forte’s camp that, five months removed from knee surgery, he probably won’t be ready to “do more things’’ for a couple of more months. That would take him to the end of training camp, which begins on July 27.
By then the Panthers should know whether they feel comfortable enough with third-year corner Bene' Benwikere at one corner spot and one of three rookies -- second-round pick James Bradberry, third-round pick Daryl Williams and fifth-round pick Zack Sanchez -- at the other spot.
Bradberry and Williams spent most of last week’s three-day minicamp working with the first team as every-down corners while Benwikere rehabbed the fractured ankle suffered late last season.
Sanchez opened as the starting nickelback.
Carolina also has journeyman Robert McClain, who started all three playoff games after Tillman went down. But McClain wasn’t even on a roster until late last season, so there are no guarantees he will make this one.
If the Panthers need veteran leadership to help the young corners and if Tillman proves healthy enough to play at least a part-time role, signing him would make sense.
Tillman obviously wants to be with the Panthers.
“Being in Carolina felt like I had been there my entire career,’’ he said last weekend. “The team, the community, the atmosphere, that vibe. The Carolinas -- North Carolina and South Carolina -- they showed a lot of love.’’
If the Panthers aren’t happy with their corner situation in late August, they may love to have Tillman back.