Rookie’s mom had a good reason to turn Panthers training camp into the carpool lane

Carolina Panthers rookie Curtis Samuel describes himself on his Twitter page as “just a kid from Brooklyn (New York) living out his dream.”

Tuesday, Samuel’s mom was on hand in Spartanburg, S.C., where the Panthers opened training camp, to witness a part of that dream. Nicole Samuel, as seen in this NFL Network video, dropped her son off on his first day of work. That’s her in the background waving.

Of course, social media caught wind of the video and chewed up some bandwidth debating it. But there was a practical and simple reason for this NFL mom to drop off her rookie son at his first full training camp.

She needs the car.

WBTV’s Chris Dyches reports that Samuel, the Panthers’ second-round draft pick, said that his mom planned to drive the car while he’s at camp. Samuel planned to show up at camp with fellow rookie Christian McCaffrey, but their schedules didn’t mesh. So, mom dropped her son off at Wofford College.

It should be noted: The rookie wide receiver’s mom kept her distance and didn’t walk into camp with him. We don’t know if she snuck any healthy snacks into that suitcase.

When Samuel gets a few more NFL paychecks, he’ll be able to buy more cars. But he only has one mom, and for now, she’s got the keys.

Samuel’s dream has taken him from Erasmus Hall high school in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Ohio State to the Carolina Panthers. Samuel credits his mother for helping him realize his goals.

“I love my mom so much and she’s always been here for me,” Samuel said in a 2015 video. “Without her, I wouldn’t be where I’m at right now.”

This week in Spartanburg, the rookie can say that literally.

This story was originally published July 26, 2017 at 6:47 PM with the headline "Rookie’s mom had a good reason to turn Panthers training camp into the carpool lane."