Panthers kicker Rhys Lloyd is using the lockout to do a different type of training. Lloyd, a 28-year-old England native, is swimming, biking and running in preparation for his first triathlon.
But Lloyd is confident he'll be back to his normal vocation once the lockout ends - despite new rules that could make a kickoff specialist like Lloyd obsolete.
The NFL is moving the spot of kickoffs up 5 yards to the 35-yard line and eliminating the running starts by the coverage team in an attempt to reduce the number of head and neck injuries on the play.
The 5-yard boost could prompt the Panthers to let John Kasay, 41, handle kickoffs and placements. He concentrated solely on placements the past three seasons. Lloyd does not think that will be the case.
"I hope I'm back. I do think I have a slight advantage in having John there because John is so good at field goals, I don't think they want to screw with that,"
Lloyd said. "I think they want to save his leg. So it's only going to help me, I think."
The Panthers were the only team with two kickers on its Week 1 roster last season. With Kasay and punter Jason Baker under contract through the 2012 season, it's doubtful the Panthers would look to draft a specialist next week.
Lloyd was among 20 restricted free agents the Panthers tendered before the lockout, although those offers could be moot in a new collective bargaining agreement. Lloyd wants to stay with the Panthers.
He is familiar with new special teams coach Brian Murphy, who was with Minnesota last year when Lloyd was in the Vikings' training camp.
Lloyd also knows Murphy from college. Lloyd kicked a game-winning field goal in 2003 to lift Minnesota over Wisconsin, where Murphy was an assistant.
"(Murphy) has a big emphasis on field position (in) special teams, and from my understanding, the head coach does as well,"
said Lloyd, referring to Ron Rivera.
Lloyd didn't get many opportunities to kick off last year for a Panthers' team that managed just 16 offensive touchdowns and finished last in the league in scoring. He posted career lows for a full season with 53 kickoffs and 11 touchbacks.
Lloyd is sure there will be more touchbacks throughout the league because of the rule change, but isn't sure it will have the intended effect of reducing injuries.
"At the end of the day, kickoff is the roughest play in football because it's full collisions,"
he said. "They're trying to protect guys, which is good. But it's a contact sport and unless you're going to wrap guys up in bubble wrap, you're not going to protect everybody."
Lloyd is training for his first triathlon in St. Petersburg, Fla., on May 1 - an Olympic distance event comprised of a 1-mile swim, 25-mile bike and a 6-2.-mile run.
"I'm focusing more on the run than anything else,"
said Lloyd, who lives in Tampa during the offseason. "The swimming and the bike I don't really have a problem with."
Lloyd doesn't have a problem with the new rules on kickoffs, either. But he is skeptical about whether they will do any good.
"I think they're trying too hard (on safety issues) instead of just letting the game be played,"
Lloyd said. "Unfortunately, when you hit people you lead with your head, (and) concussions are going to happen. That's why I play the position I play."
