Cat Scratch Reader
The Panthers will have a new look, especially on defense, with all of their offseason acquisitions.
The dust seems to have mostly settled on NFL free agency. Most of the big free agents have found new homes and a lot of the bigger name players on the trade block have relocated. It’s been about a week since the last significant Carolina Panthers signing, so it’s a good time to look at the roster with the draft pending.
The offense is almost exactly the same. The defense is vastly different. Let’s break it down. Note that I might not include every single player currently on the roster. This is more like if the Panthers played a game tomorrow, here’s a rough idea of what the roster would look like.
Quarterbacks: Bryce Young, Andy Dalton, Jack Plummer
It’s the same quarterback room we had last season. Bryce Young more than earned his place as the starter. Andy Dalton re-signed as a veteran presence and quality spot starter. Jack Plummer had moments last preseason and seems fine for a third string option.
Running backs: Chuba Hubbard, Rico Dowdle, Jonathon Brook, Emani Bailey
Dowdle has been the one big new acquisition on offense. The Panthers somehow got him on a bargain of a deal after a breakout season in Dallas. He and Hubbard will provide a dynamic one-two punch on the ground. Meanwhile the Cowboys signed Miles Sanders to help fill the void left by Dowdle.
Wide receivers: Adam Thielen, Xavier Legette, Jalen Coker, David Moore, Dan Chisena, Dax Milne
This group looks like it could still use some work. Legette did not live up to his billing as a first round pick last year, but Coker kind of made up for that by being an undrafted gem. Their development could change the trajectory of this group.
Tight ends: Ja’Tavion Sanders, Tommy Tremble, Jordan Matthews
Conspicuously absent from the depth chart is Ian Thomas, who stuck around in Carolina longer than I think most people expected. He missed most of the last two seasons with calf problems and is currently unrostered as of this writing. Jordan Matthews looked good in the preseason and has stuck around. The unit isn’t great, but we’ve seen much worse in Carolina.
Offensive line: Ikem Ekwonu, Damien Lewis, Austin Corbett, Robert Hunt, Taylor Moton, Brady Christensen, Cade Mays, Yosh Nijman, Chandler Zavala
I think most people were surprised that the Panthers were able to convince all of Corbett, Christensen, and Mays to come back. That triumvirate provided the Panthers with almost all of their center depth last season. It’s nice having all of them to keep together an offensive line unit that is actually one of the stronger groups around the league for once.
Defensive line: Derrick Brown, Tershawn Wharton, A’Shawn Robinson, Bobby Brown III, Shy Tuttle, LaBryan Ray
The entire world knew the Panthers needed to beef up most of their defense. They invested on the defensive line, adding Wharton and another Brown so...
