This year the NFL instituted a new rule that allows team captains to wear a "C" on the front of their jersey to dinstinguish them as leaders. But while the "C" is supposed to stand for "captain," I'm wondering if, at least in the case of the Panthers, it doesn't stand for "cursed."

   This about it.

   Already three of Carolina's five captains have struggled through injury-plagued seasons. Offensive captain Jake Delhomme and special teams captain Nick Goings are already on injured reserve, while Dan Morgan, one of the team's defensive captains, has missed the last three games with a partially torn Achilles.

   Carolina's other two captains are Steve Smith and Julius Peppers. Smith has played well this season despite a dip in production with David Carr under center, and Peppers is just now starting to turn it on after a slow start.

   UPDATE: By the way, on Thursday afternoon, not long after I posted this, the Panthers added offensive tackle Jordan Gross and kicker John Kasay as their new team captains on offense and special teams, respectively. Gross had a little fun with it, joking that he was honored to be selected as "the third place captain."