SPARTANBURG, S.C. — There was a time when Damione Lewis was expected to dominate at defensive tackle in the NFL, so much so that St. Louis made him its No.1 draft pick (12th overall) out of Miami in 2001.

For whatever reason, it didn't happen. There was a broken foot that rookie year and gradually, he became a sometime starter and then an afterthought. In five seasons with the Rams, he started more than seven games just once. By the time Carolina signed him as a free agent in 2006, Lewis was just another guy, thought of by some as something of a bust. The Panthers brought him in to back up Kris Jenkins and Maake Kemoeatu.

"There's the old saying; if it doesn't kill you it makes you stronger," Lewis said yesterday outside the Wofford cafeteria. "My life's good; I've got a wife and kids; I'm happy. I love football, but I know I'm not going to be able to do it forever. People can say what they want to say; I've always enjoyed the game and I love the game, and that's the way I look at it."

And if his St. Louis days weren't what he had hoped ...

"Some people are going to be great; you have very few hall of famers compared to the numbers that play the game. I'm not going to worry about it."

Lewis played better than many expected as a Panther, and now his role has increased. He's become an important cog in a defensive line hoping to reestablish its dominance. Jenkins has been traded. Defensive end Mike Rucker has retired.

Defensive end Julius Peppers is coming off his worst season.

Something had to change, and Lewis is a big part of that.

"He came in and did a good job... he played quite a bit for us," said coach John Fox. "He's been a starter in the league, he's capable of starting and we think he's capable of starting for us."

After collecting eight sacks in two years as a reserve, he'll line up next to Kemoeatu.

"I'm playing base (defense) and sub now, where last year I played mostly nickel (passing situations) and came in for Maake a little bit on run downs," Lewis said. "So I'm doing a little bit of everything now."

The key, though, might be that the defense is doing less. While no one is being specific, the coaches — with a number of new players to consider — have scaled back the playbook.

"You don't hear (complaints or confusion) on the field as much as we did last year, I think," Lewis said. "You hear a lot more enthusiasm; guys are being a lot more energetic on the field, and talking to each other more. I think guys are relaxing."

Lewis said that while things are generally the same for the front four, the defensive calls from the linebackers are coming in faster.

"I think (scaling back is) allowing us to play faster with less thinking from the front and from the linebackers."

Lewis, who was given Tuesday's practice off after taking a hit to an ankle Monday, feels as if he has a new lease on life.

"In St. Louis, especially in my later years, there was a lot of unsound stuff that we were doing," he said. "We got a lot criticism up front for it, but actually it wasn't always us. We took it with a smile and just kept going. But there were a lot of things that just weren't right with what we were doing on that defense.

"Here everything is well thought-out. I think coach (John) Fox and coach (Mike) Trgovac do a great job of putting our game plan together. Even in simplifying what we're doing, they're doing a great job with that."

Lewis, a self-described country boy from Sulphur Springs, Tex., also feels that Carolina is a better fit for him, with everyone from owner Jerry Richardson on down interested in the players as individuals.

"I come from a real small town," Lewis said. "Hunting and fishing, get out and do what I like to do outdoors. It's a lot easier to do it here than a lot of other places.

"Give me a bass boat and a couple of cold beers and I'm fine."