Coach John Fox wants to return to the formula that carried the Carolina Panthers to the Super Bowl in 2004.

"We think this year's team will be able to develop the type of power running game we had with Stephen Davis and DeShaun Foster," Fox said Saturday after completing play in the annual John Fox GMI Golf Tournament for Kids at Caledonia Golf and Fish Club in Pawleys Island.

"We were not as powerful last season as I'd like to be," Fox said.

The Panthers drafted Jonathan Stewart, a big running back with the 13th pick in the first round, and traded next year's first-round pick to Philadelphia for the rights to draft massive offensive tackle Jeff Otah with the 19th pick.

"We feel good about those two first-rounders," Fox said. "Stewart had a toe injury and that created a little doubt about him. Without that injury he would have been a top 10 pick and we never would have gotten him. He's a powerful guy, thick lower body, excellent balance, great feet," Fox said.

Otah (325 pounds) joins new acquisitions Keydrick Vincent (325), Milford Brown (330), Toniu Fonoti (350) and Geoff Schwartz (330) on a suddenly big offensive line that Fox hopes will open plenty of holes for Stewart and returning back DeAngelo Williams.

Some NFL draft analysts saw Carolina taking a quarterback with its first-round pick. Fox said that was a smokescreen. Veteran Jake Delhomme is ready to return to form after undergoing elbow surgery.

"Jake is as big and strong as I have ever seen him," Fox said. "He had been having pain in that elbow for a couple of years and it snapped on a simple throw to Brad Hoover in the flat. He wasn't hit on the play."

Delhomme threw some at a minicamp earlier this month, and Fox likes the progress his No. 1 QB has made as well as the upgrade in his receivers. The Panthers released Drew Carter and Keary Colbert, adding Muhsin Muhammad from Chicago and D.J. Hackett from Seattle to take pressure off all-pro wideout Steve Smith. Fox says he still likes second-year players Dwayne Jarrett and Rhyne Robinson as receivers, too.

On defense, Carolina signed linebacker Landon Johnson, who had 143 tackles with Cincinnati last season, saw defensive end Mike Rucker retire and traded defensive tackle Kris Jenkins to the New York Jets.

"We wanted to get more athletic and quick as far as rushing the passer," Fox said. With just 23 quarterback sacks last season, Fox plans to change the Panthers' rush scheme.

"We had to do things to get a better pass rush," Fox said. One change will be that quicker tackle Damoine Lewis will take over for Jenkins. The second will be to find ways to get more pressure from defensive end Julius Peppers, who had a career low 2.5 sacks last season.

Fox said he wants to give rookie safety Charles Godfrey of Iowa a chance to start in the secondary and that he likes his fourth-round pick, linebacker Dan Connor out of Penn State. Though they didn't need a linebacker, Fox said the Panthers couldn't pass up Connor, who had been projected as a potential first-rounder. He will develop as a special teams player first and add depth to the linebacker corps.

Fox says the NFC South has been hard to predict in the past. Tampa Bay went from 4-12 to the playoffs last season and New Orleans made the NFC championship game the year before.

"Last year was the first time that the NFC South didn't have somebody in the conference championship game, Fox said. You never know about the NFL. Nobody was picking the New York Giants to win the Super Bowl last year. You just have to be prepared to take advantage of your opportunities."

 

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