I can wait. When training camp opens, summer ends. And I like summer the way a kid does.

But when I get to Spartanburg, S.C., where the Carolina Panthers train, there are two things I anticipate.

The first is a certain Asian restaurant that because it's small and can't accommodate a crowd shall remain nameless. No matter what you eat, the bill is $8.10, and that includes a beer or glass of wine.

Let's say that, to combat the dehydration caused by the relentless South Carolina heat, you add two more beers or glasses of wine to your dinner bill. It will go up to $11.12. It never exceeds $12.79. And former Panthers lineman Kris Jenkins used to eat here.

The second is Carolina's first practice, which is at 9:10 a.m. a week from today.

I think the Panthers have a chance to be one of the NFL's best teams. And I almost never write that or say that or even think that.

They have markedly improved their offensive line, receivers and running backs.

Remember how coach John Fox used running back Stephen Davis? Davis hammered and hammered and defenders had to stop him, which set up the passing game and created opportunities for change-up running back DeShaun Foster, whom Panthers fans then liked.

Davis was 6 feet, 230 pounds. First-round pick Jonathan Stewart is 5-10, 235. Every coach improves when he has a runner who can pick up 3 or 4 yards and, with a juke or hard shoulder, 15 or 20 more. Fox improves more than most. It's the game he loves.

With his receivers, and with DeAngelo Williams in the Foster role, the offense will be considerably less dull and considerably more effective.

Alas -- and every team, even New England, has an alas -- there are two potential flaws. They are Jake Delhomme's arm and Julius Peppers' brain.

Delhomme, 33, had major surgery on his right elbow. He looked good in practice last month. Everybody said so.

But until there are defenders hurtling at him and he has to throw hard and accurately and on time, there's no way to know what the impact will be. Delhomme is the most essential Panther. Steve Smith is the best, but he has three solid receivers to complement him.

Delhomme has Brett Basanez, who missed last season with a wrist injury, and Matt Moore. Moore was effective enough. But my sense is that when he was in the huddle the Panthers disdained the playbook and used a playpamphlet. He is, however, only 23. Maybe he will emerge as Jake's eventual successor.

Maybe Peppers will emerge as Julius Peppers. As recently as 2006, he was as good as any defensive player in the league. Last season he was harmless. Nobody I've talked to -- no teammate, coach or executive -- knows why. And he's only 28.

But listen. Nobody, except for adults who spend their weekends on message boards, ought to be cynical in mid-July. Camp is great, magical restaurants abound, and if summer has to end, it might as well end in Spartanburg.