The Carolina Panthers are turning over a new leaf. After hiring head coach Frank Reich and selecting quarterback Bryce Young first overall, the Panthers now have to sort through the rest of their roster. With training camp underway and the preseason on the horizon, Carolina has questions to answer at multiple spots on their depth chart.
Let’s run through the Panthers’ 90-man roster and determine how they’ll get down to 53 players before the NFL’s cutdown day on Aug. 29.
Carolina Panthers 53-Man Roster Projection
Quarterback
- In: Bryce Young, Andy Dalton, Matt Corral
- Out: Jake Luton
The Panthers have already named Young as their Week 1 starter, while Dalton will continue his career as a veteran backup after inking a two-year, $10 million deal over the offseason.
Corral is a distant third on Carolina’s depth chart after missing his entire rookie campaign due to a Lisfranc injury. Given what they’ve already invested in him, it probably doesn’t make sense for the Panthers to give up on Corral already. Plus, the NFL’s new third quarterback rule will allow Corral to be inactive on gamedays while remaining eligible to enter a contest in the event of an injury emergency.
Running Back
- In: Miles Sanders, Chuba Hubbard, Rasheem Blackshear
- Out: Spencer Brown, Camerun Peoples
After trading Christian McCaffrey last fall and watching D’Onta Foreman depart via free agency in the spring, the Panthers had to rethink their running back depth chart over the offseason.
Carolina gave Sanders the biggest contract of any free agent running back, and he’s expected to serve in something close to a three-down role. Hubbard is locked in as the Panthers’ RB2 because of his receiving prowess and regular action on special teams. Blackshear was Carolina’s primary kick returner in 2022 and doesn’t seem to be facing much in the way of competition from Brown or Peoples.
Wide Receiver
- In: Adam Thielen, DJ Chark, Terrace Marshall Jr., Jonathan Mingo, Laviska Shenault Jr., Shi Smith
- Out: Damiere Byrd, Gary Jennings, C.J. Saunders, Josh Vann, Javon Wims, Derek Wright
The Panthers revamped their wide receiver corps over the offseason, sending DJ Moore to the Bears as part of the package to acquire the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft before signing Thielen and Chark in free agency.
Those two veterans will be Young’s top two receivers for as long as they can stay healthy. Meanwhile, Marshall looks like the early favorite to take over WR3 duties after earning praise from Reich, but Mingo will certainly factor in as the season progresses.
Shenault, Smith, and Byrd will compete for the final two receiver spots on the Panthers’ depth chart. Shenault offers more versatility than the other options, while Smith was Carolina’s main kick returner in 2022. Still, it wouldn’t be a shock if the Panthers went with Byrd, thanks to his speed.
Tight End
- In: Hayden Hurst, Ian Thomas, Tommy Tremble, Giovanni Ricci
- Out: Stephen Sullivan
Another new addition to Carolina’s pass-catching unit, Hurst managed 52 receptions for the Bengals last season. The Panthers haven’t had a receiving threat at tight end in several years, and Hurst will act as a safety blanket for Young, especially in the red zone.
Hurst’s presence pushes Thomas into a No. 2 role, which is probably a better fit for his skill set and ceiling. Tremble, a third-round pick in 2021, has just 39 receptions through two seasons and will only become more marginalized now that Hurst is in town. Ricci makes the roster due to his fullback/tight end versatility and special teams prowess.
Offensive Line
- In: Ikem Ekwonu, Brady Christensen, Bradley Bozeman, Cade Mays, Taylor Moton, Cameron Erving, Chandler Zavala, Justin McCray
- Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) List: Austin Corbett
- Out: Deonte Brown, Larnel Coleman, J.D. DiRenzo, Nash Jensen, Michael Jordan, Ricky Lee, Sam Tecklenburg, BJ Wilson
The Panthers will — eventually — bring back all five starters from an offensive line that showed plenty of growth by the end of last season. However, Corbett is currently on the PUP list and is expected to remain there into the regular season, which would require him to miss at least four games.
Carolina’s fourth-round selection in this year’s draft, Zavala looked like the early favorite to replace Corbett, but he’s on PUP, too. Instead, Mays has been working with the starting offense. McCray, who profiles as the backup center, could also see time at guard.
We only have the Panthers keeping eight offensive linemen, which is light compared to most other NFL teams. It feels like Carolina needs another blocker capable of filling in at tackle, but it’s unclear who that option might be.
Defensive Line
- In: Derrick Brown, Shy Tuttle, DeShawn Williams, Henry Anderson, Marquan McCall
- Out: Antwuan Jackson, LaBryan Ray, Jalen Redmond, Taylor Stallworth, Nick Thurman, Raequan Williams
Brown is the Panthers’ best player along their defensive line and should be in line for an extension after Carolina exercised his fifth-year option for 2024. He’s coming off the best season of his career, one in which he rarely left the field while playing nearly 900 defensive snaps. How Brown adjusts to playing defensive end in a 3-4 scheme is something to watch as the season gets underway.
Meanwhile, Tuttle will slide in at nose tackle after coming over from the division-rival Saints. McCall was expected to compete with Bravvion Roy to back up Tuttle in the middle of Carolina’s defense, but the Panthers waived Roy this week, ensuring that McCall will make the roster.
EDGE
- In: Brian Burns, Yetur Gross-Matos, Marquis Haynes Sr., DJ Johnson, Amaré Barno
- Out: Kobe Jones, Eku Leota, Jordan Thomas
Burns headlines the Panthers’ pass-rushing plan, but the club desperately needs help behind him. Gross-Matos, a former second-round pick, hasn’t developed over three NFL seasons, while Haynes is currently dealing with a back injury that’s kept him out of practice for more than a week.
Unless Carolina believes Johnson or Barno is ready to step up opposite Burns, they need to consider a free agent addition. Options are drying up, as Leonard Floyd, Frank Clark, and Yannick Ngakoue have all found new homes in recent weeks.
Linebacker
- In: Frankie Luvu, Shaq Thompson, Brandon Smith, Deion Jones, Kamu Grugier-Hill
- Out: Ace Eley, Bumper Pool, Chandler Wooten
Luvu looked like a down-ballot Defensive Player of the Year candidate during the early portion of last season. After reworking his contract to stick with the team, Thompson will remain Carolina’s longest-tenured player.
The Panthers invested a fourth-round pick in Smith a year ago and could view him as Thompson’s long-term replacement, so he’s a roster lock, too. Jones, an August addition, has 88 career NFL starts under his belt, while Grugier-Hill is one of Carolina’s best special teams contributors.
Cornerback
- In: Jaycee Horn, Donte Jackson, CJ Henderson, Keith Taylor Jr., Stantley Thomas-Oliver III
- Out: Greg Mabin, Mac McCain, Herb Miller, Mark Milton, Rejzohn Wright
Horn injured his ankle in early June, and Jackson is recovering from Achilles surgery. But both players have since returned to practice and appear ready for the regular season. Horn has only appeared in 16 of a possible 34 games during his NFL career, so Henderson, Taylor, and Thomas-Oliver will need to be ready in the event of another injury.
We’re only keeping five cornerbacks, but Carolina has several safeties capable of playing a CB role.
Safety
- In: Vonn Bell, Xavier Woods, Jeremy Chinn, Jammie Robinson, Sam Franklin Jr., Eric Rowe
- Out: Josh Thomas
Bell and Woods complement each other perfectly as the Panthers’ starting safeties. At the same time, Carolina also added a future starting option by selecting Robinson in the third round of this year’s draft.
Chinn is the Panthers’ ace in the hole. He can play in the back end, as a big nickel, or at linebacker, which should appeal to Ejiro Evero as he devises multiple looks for Carolina. Rowe also offers cornerback versatility, and Carolina should value his experience in the secondary.
Specialists
- In: Eddy Pineiro (K), Johnny Hekker (P), JJ Jansen (LS)
The Panthers extended Pineiro this offseason and traded former kicker Zane Gonzalez to the Broncos. None of Carolina’s specialists will face any competition for their jobs this summer.
