CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Before pushing the panic button because the Carolina Panthers lost starting cornerback Charles Tillman to a torn ACL, take a peek at the player who will replace him.

Robert McClain, 5-foot-9 and 195 pounds, might be smaller than the Panthers prefer at cornerback. He might have spent most of this season watching games from his couch after being released by the New England Patriots at the end of training camp.

But in just over a half after replacing Tillman in Sunday’s regular-season finale against Tampa Bay, he had an interception and seven tackles.

McClain has started 17 games, including two for Carolina as a rookie (seventh-round pick) in 2010. He has four career interceptions and 22 passes defensed.

That experience led the Panthers (15-1) to sign him in early December as insurance should Tillman’s right knee that kept him out of four games prior to Sunday not hold up.

"We didn’t miss a beat when Robert came in," said nickelback Cortland Finnegan of McClain’s performance on Sunday.

McClain is an interesting person with many sides. Here are five things you might not know about him:

Smarts

Patriots coach Bill Belichick liked what he called McClain’s smarts and work ethic in training camp. He liked that McClain offered something in the return game beyond playing cornerback. The Patriots simply had better options at cornerback. Here’s what Belichick said on Day 2 of training camp: "He’s a smart kid, very disciplined, works hard. Has a good understanding of football, the different positions on defense, the different positions in the kicking game."

Carolina coach Ron Rivera also used the word smart to describe McClain. "Very smart football player. Great anticipation," he said. "Plays with his eyes. The thing we really liked about him was the tape he had put on through the preseason."

Military background

Like Tillman and Rivera, McClain comes from a family with a military background. His mother and dad work for the federal government (he moved around the country growing up because of that), and his brother and father were in the army. McClain actually wanted to be in the Marines growing up. He was prepared to go into officer candidate school after his college football career at the University of Connecticut before the Panthers drafted him.

Artist

McClain likes to draw and paint, and has a website featuring his art. He began drawing at the age of four. One of his favorite pieces is a portrait of Jean-Michel Basquiat, considered one of the most important American artists of the 20th century. While with the Falcons, McClain drew a white charcoal piece of William Moore and Thomas DeCoud -- a starting safety for the Panthers much of last season. McClain also is a tattoo artist.

Super Nintendo and movies

He fits right in with a team whose quarterback (Cam Newton) loves to play video games and other starting cornerback (Josh Norman) likes to watch movies. McClain said during an interview while playing in Atlanta last season that his best holiday gift ever was a Super Nintendo he got from his dad "back in the day." In that same interview he said he had about 700 DVDs, and that he takes about five on each road trip. He didn’t pick a favorite movie in that interview, but said "any movie with Will Ferrell I enjoy."

"Melo" and supercross fan

McClain named his dog "Melo" after New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony. He volunteered with the Atlanta Humane society while with the Falcons. He also loves to attend motocross and supercross motorcycle races, so he’s at least in the right neighborhood for motorsports in the heart of NASCAR.