NEW YORK – The Carolina Panthers got their quarterback, then began rebuilding one of the weaker defenses in the NFL.
Against the backdrop of a restored lockout, the Panthers opened the third and final day of the draft Saturday by selecting West Virginia cornerback Brandon Hogan to begin the fourth round. Carolina made Cam Newton the No. 1 overall pick Thursday, and went for defensive tackles Terrell McClain and Sione Fua in the third round Friday.
In the 5-foot-10, 192-pound Hogan, Panthers new coach Ron Rivera is taking a chance on a player with a checkered past who also is recovering from a knee injury.
While Hogan led a secondary that ranked 11th in the nation in pass defense, he served a suspension following a drunken-driving arrest among other legal issues, and missed the team's final two games with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. He says he won't be able to begin running until August.
This wild week in the NFL resumed with players again locked out after a brief respite Friday. That night, however, an appeals court decision allowed the league to reinstate the lockout that had been lifted earlier in the week.
But the picks keep coming because the draft is protected under the old collective bargaining agreement, which expired March 11.
The Arizona Cardinals moved to improve their pass rush by selecting Texas linebacker Sam Acho. The 6-1, 257-pounder was recently honored with a $25,000 scholarship as the nation's top scholar athlete.
Acho's parents emigrated from Nigeria, and each summer he returns to the country with his father and brother on a medical mission.
Cecil Shorts, a wide receiver from powerhouse Mount Union, became the first Division III player chosen when he went to the Jacksonville Jaguars with the 17th pick in the fourth round.
Two picks later, another Matthews joined the NFL when Oregon linebacker Casey Matthews was picked by the Philadelphia Eagles. He's the brother of Packers All-Pro linebacker Clay Matthews and the first Oregon player chosen in this draft.
The Philadelphia Eagles made Nebraska All-American Alex Henery the first kicker taken with the 23rd pick of the fourth round. Henery hit 18-of-19 field goal attempts (10-of-11 from 40 yards or longer) and all 54 extra points last season.
Eagles longtime kicker David Akers is a free agent, but the team has placed a transition tag on him and would have a chance to retain him.
The Cleveland Browns, with a pick from Atlanta, chose Stanford fullback Owen Marecic, a two-way player who also played linebacker. He won the inaugural Paul Hornung Award that goes to the nation's most versatile player.
"He's a tough kid," Hornung said of the 6-0, 246-pound Marecic, who ran for five touchdowns and had two interceptions last season for Orange Bowl champion Stanford.
In a 13-second span against Notre Dame in 2010, he scored on a 1-yard TD plunge and then returned an interception 20 yards for another score.
In the fifth round, Iowa's Ricky Stanzi became the eighth quarterback taken in the draft when the Kansas City Chiefs picked him at No. 135 overall.
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