Greg Hardy Injury: Updates on Panthers DE's Shoulder and Return

Updates from Friday, Sept. 12

Steve Reed of the Associated Press provides an update on Greg Hardy's official Week 2 status:

Updates from Wednesday, Sept. 3

The Panthers' official Twitter feed has the latest on Hardy:

"

Rivera says DEs Greg Hardy and Charles Johnson took all their reps in practice today and looked good.

— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) September 3, 2014"

Updates from Monday, Sept. 1

Steve Reed of the Associated Press updated Greg Hardy's status from Panthers practice on Monday:

Updates from Wednesday, Aug. 27

Black and Blue Review reported on Greg Hardy's status:

Updates from Tuesday, Aug. 26

Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer has an update on Hardy:

"

Carolina Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy didn’t practice Monday, but he was still dragging after a long day in what has been a long summer.

Hardy was at Bank of America Stadium for an early-morning workout, but was held out of the two-hour afternoon practice as he recovers from a bruised left shoulder.

"

Updates from Monday, Aug. 25

The Panthers updated Greg Hardy's status for Monday's practice:

Updates from Sunday, Aug. 24

The Panthers provided an update on Hardy's status:

Original Text

The Carolina Panthers received a scare on Friday night when defensive end Greg Hardy was ruled out of the game after suffering a shoulder bruise, according to Joe Person of The Charlotte Observer:

During the offseason, Hardy signed his franchise tender with the team which will pay him $13.116 million this year, via Spotrac.com. Hardy was instrumental in Carolina's defensive surge in 2013 when the team finished second in the league in yards allowed and points per game, as the defensive end tallied 59 tackles a career-high 15 sacks and one forced fumble.

The veteran defensive tackle is expected to play a huge role once again this season opposite Charles Johnson on a very strong defensive front.

While a shoulder bruise isn't a serious injury, Hardy's situation is certainly something to monitor, as the Panthers' regular-season opener—an important road contest against the division rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers—is just over two weeks away.