October 17, 2025 • 9 mins
Celebrate 30 seasons of Carolina Panthers football with Jim Szoke. Join him as he sits down with the key figures who shaped the past 30 seasons, reminiscing on the moments that made Panther's history. This week's guest is former Panthers defensive tackle, Dwan Edwards.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Former Panthers defensive tackle. Dwan Edwards played eleven years in
the NFL, beginning with Baltimore on the Buffalo, then his
final four years as a Carolina Panther. His final season
the Super Bowl fifty season four Carolina and his final
game was in that contest. We'll catch up with the
man who lives in Charlotte with his family at five
to see what's happening with Dwan Edwards today.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Thirty seasons of Panther football a celebration of the players, coaches,
and other key figures who've contributed to the organizational success.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
Catch up with Dwan Edwards now who played his final
four years with the Carolina Panthers, stops in Baltimore and Buffalo.
Was it eleven or twelve years in the NFL? Twelve years?
Congratulations on that and for you your most productive years,
I would probably say your three most productive years came
as a Carolina Panther. All part of that has said
you were here during the really where the team was
(00:52):
on the rise, coming up from your career standpoint, talk
about you first of all before the team and what
they were able to accomplish. What was it like as
a player playing in the system and with Sean McDermott
as a defensive coordinator and what you were able to accomplish.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
It was great for me. It was an opportunity for
me to really come here and do what I did well,
which I kind of haven't been able to do, you
know for certain places I played in my career. So
it was an opportunity for me to play fast. You know,
I'm pretty much played in a three fourth sys of
my whole career, so coming here playing in the four
to three and getting to you know, get some sacks
(01:26):
and rusted quarterback was fantastic for me and like you said,
allowed me to have some of my most productive years.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Yeah. For you guys, we have Colin Coles. When the
guys were talking with bit, Mario Addison, you know, Cony Ee,
Charles Johnson KK. I mean, what a great group to
take that position group of what you guys you probably
had to fight for reps out there right with all
the talent that was on that side.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
No doubt, and that's great. You know, you want to
have that dynamic where everyone's fighting for reps and got
to work hard, and you know, I think that really
helped our dynamic of our team just being competitive and
really having to compete for those and.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
You played with really a whole defense was that way,
and you can think we'll talk about the Super Bowl
game later, you guys. You guys bowled out defensively in
that Super Bowl game as well. But behind you having
Luke Keigley and Thomas Davis. Shack was a rookie that year,
secondary was loaded, Josh Norman was having a career year.
What was it like just as far as that whole
unit defensively and the cohesiveness you guys played with.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
I think it was definitely a tribute to Sean McDermott
and how I was able to get everybody on the
same page. Great coaching and a team that was just
super competitive. That was just you know, it was evident
from training camp we got in fight, Josh Norman and
Cam Don't getting a fight early in training camp, and
(02:41):
you know, having a guy like Cam on offense, the
defense always wants to be prepared and bring it and
kind of shut him up.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
So it was just a good dynamic that we.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
Had super competitive guys, guys that were professionals, guys that
were locked in and just love to compete.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
And then you sledgehammers, like you know, told Bird and
Jay stew In that as far as the practice battles.
Speaker 4 (03:00):
Up here, we're a great with that too. Oh. It
was amazing.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
We just team was loaded with great players and great
teammates and guys that just wanted to compete and win.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
What we mentioned Sean McDermott, Ron Rivera really seems being
a really good player in his career. Not all coaches
played at the NFL level. What was it like playing
for a coach that was a player's coach so to speak?
Speaker 3 (03:21):
Ron was amazing, I guess some of the one of
the first head coaches that you know, I'm gonna have
some real conversations with, you know, about my family, about
just life. And he's gonna be honest with me. If
I played well, he's gonna tell me, you know, I
played well. If not, he's going to tell me I
need to step my game up. And I can appreciate
(03:41):
a coach that's gonna be honest with me and not
tell me what I want to hear or give me
coach speak. He's gonna give it to me real and
Ron I can appreciate that and respect that as a coach.
And he did a great job while he was here.
Probably one of my favorite coaches for sure.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Yeah, great, great human being. The whole assent from twenty
fourteen to twenty fifteen is, especially when you look back
at it, mind numbing. I mean, you guys won collectively
eighteen regular season games in a row, because you win
those last four in fourteen, won a playoff game, started
out fourteen to oh the next regular season there, I mean,
when you're sitting there at three eight and one and
(04:17):
you're losing, I think the Vikings was the last lost
part of that. Yeah, what was the mood? I mean,
I felt like Ron might get fired at that time.
And then the next thing, you know, you guys go
on with the great ones in NFL history.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
It is so funny you talk about that game in Minnesota.
First of all, was one of the coldest games I
think I ever played it. It was outside at the Gopher Stadium. Yeah,
it was outside of h coldest game ever played in.
And then I think at one point we got two
punts blocked for touchdowns in a row. And that was
my eleventh season, So at that time, I'm honestly thinking
(04:47):
about retiring, Like we're not playing I think we lost
six to seven in a row maybe that year, and
somehow we managed to turn it around, and you know,
division was struggling a little bit, so we made the playoffs,
you know, seven.
Speaker 4 (05:00):
One or whatever.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Right, it turned out my whole attitude on our outlook
of the team and how we could bounce back and
obviously you know, come back and play the next season
and we play amazing and then I think about retiring
after that season.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
You go from where at that moment of that Minnesota
game in late fourteen, where you probably thinking we can't
win a game, to getting to December of twenty fifteen
where you feel like you can't lose a game. The
only loss was to Atlanta. What was it like as
far as just keeping it rolling like that? I mean
fourteen and oh in a regular season like that is
just like mind, nothing to think about now.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
It doesn't make sense, and it's so hard to win
in the NFL. But we just came together the way
our team was. Defensively, obviously cam having an MVP type season.
Our ability to run the ball, it was just a
formula for great football. Our ability to stop the run, offense,
(05:58):
running the ball, score touchdown. We can get leads and
you know, from there, I think we led the league
in interceptions that year, had a great D line. We
could you know, unleash and get after quarterbacks, and it
was just a recipe for success for us.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
So you make the postseason obviously fifteen and one, and
you're blowing out Seattle thirty one nothing at halftime, and
they almost come all the way back thirty one to
twenty four. Thomas Davis recovers that on site kick with
just up of minutes ago. They got a little nerve
wracking there, and then you do blow the Doores off
of Arizona obviously the week after that. But you guys
really did have the ability to when things were flying,
(06:33):
and like, you guys were just not just winning, you
were steamrolling opponents.
Speaker 3 (06:36):
It was amazing. The city, The fans were so amazing
in Charlotte that year. Still have never seen anything like that.
Just people still talk about that. I talked to in
the city just how electric the city was and how
fun and excitement the city has. And you know, definitely
hoping that we can get back on that same track
and get the Panthers back in the playoffs.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
Yeah, they'd be great, And obviously things will. They're kind
of building in that direction right now. And then you
get to the super Bowl, you guys are favored. It's
Peyton Manning's last game. Did you know it was gonna
be your last game when you took the field that day?
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Yes, I have a video walking around the stands that
I took and in my head, We're gonna win and
I'm gonna ride off in the sunset. This is what
I thought. But yeah, I pretty much knew that was
gonna be my last game. And you know, definitely didn't
go the way we wanted to. But obviously I'd rather
have played and lost than to not have ever went
(07:32):
to the Super Bowl. So it was a great experience.
Obviously didn't finish, but great memories always get to share.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Yeah, well, the defense had another great game there. I
know you don't break it into components, but they did,
so we're gonna say that. And then beyond that, there
were some obviously tangible things. The turnovers were huge, The
sacks that were given up were huge. For whatever combination
of reasons. The approach mentally anything to feel flat. Did
it feel off when you talk about the psyche of
the game was a big component. Did that play in
(08:01):
losing by two touchdowns.
Speaker 3 (08:03):
Ah, if I would say anything, you know, looking back,
I would say we probably were a little tight that game,
and we were a have fun team. You know, we'd
let it loose. You know, we weren't uptight. We just
went and played and.
Speaker 4 (08:16):
Did our thing.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
And I think the super Bowl we probably were a
little uptight. Actually I ran into an official one time,
probably getting my car oil chains or something like that,
and I recognize a guy and he's talking about the
super Bowl and he's like, I actually did the super Bowl,
and just going into the different locker rooms, he said,
there was two totally different dynamics about how very quiet
(08:39):
in our locker room. And you could attribute that to
anything focused or whatever, guy's being prepared or whatever. But
he said, on the flip side, the Denver, I mean
there was music gone.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
He said. He was talking about the head coach.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Was in there in his underwear, and like, I almost
think them, the Broncos having lost this probably I think
a few years prior and having that experience, and maybe
they knew that they just had to, you know, play
their game, be loose and just play the game. I
will say we probably felt a little uptight, a little
(09:13):
too business oriented. When we were all year we were
we had fun and we were loose and that's the
way we played, and it just seemed like we were
a little tight.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
Yeah, I've heard a lot of the same thing, just
for whatever reason. There's collectively, there's individually. How that whole
approach was for that game. And now we fast forward
ten years later, as you said, that was your final
game was on that field in Santa Clara. Five kids.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
Life is good, Yes, yes, life is great. It's busy,
but it's great. They keep me busy and feeling young.
So yes, it's good.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
Good way to be. Yes, great to catch up with you.
Thank you, j One, Thank you for your time.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
Thirty seasons of Panther Football.
Former Panthers defensive tackle. Dwan Edwards played eleven years in
the NFL, beginning with Baltimore on the Buffalo, then his
final four years as a Carolina Panther. His final season
the Super Bowl fifty season four Carolina and his final
game was in that contest. We'll catch up with the
man who lives in Charlotte with his family at five
to see what's happening with Dwan Edwards today.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Thirty seasons of Panther football a celebration of the players, coaches,
and other key figures who've contributed to the organizational success.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
Catch up with Dwan Edwards now who played his final
four years with the Carolina Panthers, stops in Baltimore and Buffalo.
Was it eleven or twelve years in the NFL? Twelve years?
Congratulations on that and for you your most productive years,
I would probably say your three most productive years came
as a Carolina Panther. All part of that has said
you were here during the really where the team was
(00:52):
on the rise, coming up from your career standpoint, talk
about you first of all before the team and what
they were able to accomplish. What was it like as
a player playing in the system and with Sean McDermott
as a defensive coordinator and what you were able to accomplish.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
It was great for me. It was an opportunity for
me to really come here and do what I did well,
which I kind of haven't been able to do, you
know for certain places I played in my career. So
it was an opportunity for me to play fast. You know,
I'm pretty much played in a three fourth sys of
my whole career, so coming here playing in the four
to three and getting to you know, get some sacks
(01:26):
and rusted quarterback was fantastic for me and like you said,
allowed me to have some of my most productive years.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Yeah. For you guys, we have Colin Coles. When the
guys were talking with bit, Mario Addison, you know, Cony Ee,
Charles Johnson KK. I mean, what a great group to
take that position group of what you guys you probably
had to fight for reps out there right with all
the talent that was on that side.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
No doubt, and that's great. You know, you want to
have that dynamic where everyone's fighting for reps and got
to work hard, and you know, I think that really
helped our dynamic of our team just being competitive and
really having to compete for those and.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
You played with really a whole defense was that way,
and you can think we'll talk about the Super Bowl
game later, you guys. You guys bowled out defensively in
that Super Bowl game as well. But behind you having
Luke Keigley and Thomas Davis. Shack was a rookie that year,
secondary was loaded, Josh Norman was having a career year.
What was it like just as far as that whole
unit defensively and the cohesiveness you guys played with.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
I think it was definitely a tribute to Sean McDermott
and how I was able to get everybody on the
same page. Great coaching and a team that was just
super competitive. That was just you know, it was evident
from training camp we got in fight, Josh Norman and
Cam Don't getting a fight early in training camp, and
(02:41):
you know, having a guy like Cam on offense, the
defense always wants to be prepared and bring it and
kind of shut him up.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
So it was just a good dynamic that we.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
Had super competitive guys, guys that were professionals, guys that
were locked in and just love to compete.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
And then you sledgehammers, like you know, told Bird and
Jay stew In that as far as the practice battles.
Speaker 4 (03:00):
Up here, we're a great with that too. Oh. It
was amazing.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
We just team was loaded with great players and great
teammates and guys that just wanted to compete and win.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
What we mentioned Sean McDermott, Ron Rivera really seems being
a really good player in his career. Not all coaches
played at the NFL level. What was it like playing
for a coach that was a player's coach so to speak?
Speaker 3 (03:21):
Ron was amazing, I guess some of the one of
the first head coaches that you know, I'm gonna have
some real conversations with, you know, about my family, about
just life. And he's gonna be honest with me. If
I played well, he's gonna tell me, you know, I
played well. If not, he's going to tell me I
need to step my game up. And I can appreciate
(03:41):
a coach that's gonna be honest with me and not
tell me what I want to hear or give me
coach speak. He's gonna give it to me real and
Ron I can appreciate that and respect that as a coach.
And he did a great job while he was here.
Probably one of my favorite coaches for sure.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Yeah, great, great human being. The whole assent from twenty
fourteen to twenty fifteen is, especially when you look back
at it, mind numbing. I mean, you guys won collectively
eighteen regular season games in a row, because you win
those last four in fourteen, won a playoff game, started
out fourteen to oh the next regular season there, I mean,
when you're sitting there at three eight and one and
(04:17):
you're losing, I think the Vikings was the last lost
part of that. Yeah, what was the mood? I mean,
I felt like Ron might get fired at that time.
And then the next thing, you know, you guys go
on with the great ones in NFL history.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
It is so funny you talk about that game in Minnesota.
First of all, was one of the coldest games I
think I ever played it. It was outside at the Gopher Stadium. Yeah,
it was outside of h coldest game ever played in.
And then I think at one point we got two
punts blocked for touchdowns in a row. And that was
my eleventh season, So at that time, I'm honestly thinking
(04:47):
about retiring, Like we're not playing I think we lost
six to seven in a row maybe that year, and
somehow we managed to turn it around, and you know,
division was struggling a little bit, so we made the playoffs,
you know, seven.
Speaker 4 (05:00):
One or whatever.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Right, it turned out my whole attitude on our outlook
of the team and how we could bounce back and
obviously you know, come back and play the next season
and we play amazing and then I think about retiring
after that season.
Speaker 1 (05:16):
You go from where at that moment of that Minnesota
game in late fourteen, where you probably thinking we can't
win a game, to getting to December of twenty fifteen
where you feel like you can't lose a game. The
only loss was to Atlanta. What was it like as
far as just keeping it rolling like that? I mean
fourteen and oh in a regular season like that is
just like mind, nothing to think about now.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
It doesn't make sense, and it's so hard to win
in the NFL. But we just came together the way
our team was. Defensively, obviously cam having an MVP type season.
Our ability to run the ball, it was just a
formula for great football. Our ability to stop the run, offense,
(05:58):
running the ball, score touchdown. We can get leads and
you know, from there, I think we led the league
in interceptions that year, had a great D line. We
could you know, unleash and get after quarterbacks, and it
was just a recipe for success for us.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
So you make the postseason obviously fifteen and one, and
you're blowing out Seattle thirty one nothing at halftime, and
they almost come all the way back thirty one to
twenty four. Thomas Davis recovers that on site kick with
just up of minutes ago. They got a little nerve
wracking there, and then you do blow the Doores off
of Arizona obviously the week after that. But you guys
really did have the ability to when things were flying,
(06:33):
and like, you guys were just not just winning, you
were steamrolling opponents.
Speaker 3 (06:36):
It was amazing. The city, The fans were so amazing
in Charlotte that year. Still have never seen anything like that.
Just people still talk about that. I talked to in
the city just how electric the city was and how
fun and excitement the city has. And you know, definitely
hoping that we can get back on that same track
and get the Panthers back in the playoffs.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
Yeah, they'd be great, And obviously things will. They're kind
of building in that direction right now. And then you
get to the super Bowl, you guys are favored. It's
Peyton Manning's last game. Did you know it was gonna
be your last game when you took the field that day?
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Yes, I have a video walking around the stands that
I took and in my head, We're gonna win and
I'm gonna ride off in the sunset. This is what
I thought. But yeah, I pretty much knew that was
gonna be my last game. And you know, definitely didn't
go the way we wanted to. But obviously I'd rather
have played and lost than to not have ever went
(07:32):
to the Super Bowl. So it was a great experience.
Obviously didn't finish, but great memories always get to share.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Yeah, well, the defense had another great game there. I
know you don't break it into components, but they did,
so we're gonna say that. And then beyond that, there
were some obviously tangible things. The turnovers were huge, The
sacks that were given up were huge. For whatever combination
of reasons. The approach mentally anything to feel flat. Did
it feel off when you talk about the psyche of
the game was a big component. Did that play in
(08:01):
losing by two touchdowns.
Speaker 3 (08:03):
Ah, if I would say anything, you know, looking back,
I would say we probably were a little tight that game,
and we were a have fun team. You know, we'd
let it loose. You know, we weren't uptight. We just
went and played and.
Speaker 4 (08:16):
Did our thing.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
And I think the super Bowl we probably were a
little uptight. Actually I ran into an official one time,
probably getting my car oil chains or something like that,
and I recognize a guy and he's talking about the
super Bowl and he's like, I actually did the super Bowl,
and just going into the different locker rooms, he said,
there was two totally different dynamics about how very quiet
(08:39):
in our locker room. And you could attribute that to
anything focused or whatever, guy's being prepared or whatever. But
he said, on the flip side, the Denver, I mean
there was music gone.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
He said. He was talking about the head coach.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Was in there in his underwear, and like, I almost
think them, the Broncos having lost this probably I think
a few years prior and having that experience, and maybe
they knew that they just had to, you know, play
their game, be loose and just play the game. I
will say we probably felt a little uptight, a little
(09:13):
too business oriented. When we were all year we were
we had fun and we were loose and that's the
way we played, and it just seemed like we were
a little tight.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
Yeah, I've heard a lot of the same thing, just
for whatever reason. There's collectively, there's individually. How that whole
approach was for that game. And now we fast forward
ten years later, as you said, that was your final
game was on that field in Santa Clara. Five kids.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
Life is good, Yes, yes, life is great. It's busy,
but it's great. They keep me busy and feeling young.
So yes, it's good.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
Good way to be. Yes, great to catch up with you.
Thank you, j One, Thank you for your time.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
Thirty seasons of Panther Football.
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