Ginn’s parting with Panthers just business

METAIRIE, La. – Ted Ginn Jr. understands the questions.

His stints with the Carolina Panthers were the difference between him being a first-round bust and a bankable free agent. It was his second go-round in Carolina, in fact, that led him to his current team, the New Orleans Saints, who just happen to play the Panthers on Sunday in an NFC wild-card game.

So Ginn gets that people are curious about whether he has mixed emotions facing his old team or feels added incentive to remind the Panthers of what they’re missing. Or wonder whether he’s been sitting in on the defense’s meetings, breaking down the Panthers playbook and sharing all of their secrets.

But he doesn’t have a good answer. At least, not one that’s going to fire up either team.

“Off the field it was a great place for me. On the field it was, too,” Ginn said this week. “But at the end of the day, you’ve got to live and you learn and you’ve got to move on. That’s all it was about. I had my great time with them and they had their time with me and that was it.

“No bad blood,” he added. “We have to just keep on moving.”

If Ginn had been cast off, like he was in Arizona and Miami, it might be a different story. So, too, if the Panthers hadn’t known how to use him, like San Francisco.

But Ginn’s departure from Carolina was about as amicable as it gets in a business where almost everyone is expendable.

The Carolina staff knew how to get the most out of Ginn’s still dazzling speed and ability to humble secondaries with big plays. In 2013, his first season with Carolina, he averaged 15.4 yards per catch and had five touchdowns. Both were career highs to that point.

When he returned in 2015, he had 44 catches for 739 yards — an average of 16.8 yards per catch — and 10 touchdowns. Last year, Ginn had 54 catches for 752 yards and four scores.

Panthers coach Ron Rivera and thengeneral manager Dave Gettleman made it clear they hoped to bring him back. The Saints offered him a larger contract, however — $11 million for three years. That, and the opportunity to play with Drew Brees, sealed the deal.

“Drew Brees is the type of guy that can extend your career, man, and that’s what it’s all about,” Ginn told ESPN.com after he signed with the Saints.

It helped that the Saints had seen enough of Ginn over the years to know how best to use him. At 32, his days as a team’s primary receiver are past him. But the Saints, like the Panthers, don’t ask him to be.

Sean Payton has always blurred roles in the passing game, and this group is no different.

Rookie running back Alvin Kamara is the Saints’ second-leading receiver this season, followed by Mark Ingram and then Ginn.

Ginn also has 10 carries this season, second most of his career.

“(The Panthers) gave me an opportunity, and I took the opportunity and did what I knew I could do with it. As much as they kept giving me opportunities, I kept succeeding for them,” Ginn said. “It’s no different here.”

While Ginn came up big the first time the Saints played the Panthers — his touchdown broke open the 34-13 win, New Orleans’ first of the season — he said having him won’t be the X factor in Sunday’s game.

These teams have already played twice this season, so any edge Ginn could provide has already happened. And for as much as he knows about the Panthers, Payton and Brees could probably qualify as experts now, too.

“Drew’s been here for almost 10 and Sean’s been here for 10. They kind of know the team in and out,” Ginn said. “It’s just a good thing for me to be able to help out with certain situations, where there might be a little gray area … me knowing different players and things like that. Other than that, they’ve really got this thing sewed up.”

In other words, save the breakup angst for somebody else. Ginn is more focused on his current team than his old one.