Total Pro Sports
New Carolina Panthers wide receiver Hunter Renfrow revealed that a serious health matter prevented him from playing football in 2024.
To the surprise of many, Hunter Renfrow went unsigned during the 2024 season following his release from the Las Vegas Raiders. After all, this is a former Pro Bowl wideout who caught 103 passes for 1,038 yards and nine touchdowns in the 2021 campaign.
As it turns out, Renfrow had to miss the entire 2024 season because of a health issue called ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease that affects the colon and rectum.
Renfrow discussed his recovery in an interview with Darin Gantt of the Carolina Panthers’ team website. Renfrow claimed that he lost significant amounts of weight and experienced fatigue and extreme fevers:
“It kicked my butt pretty good. Last year, I fluctuated in weight; I went down to 150 pounds. I had like seven straight days of 103-degree fevers. It’s tough to play when you’re not feeling great…
“It’s just trying to get back, trying to get healthy, trying to do something I love. I enjoyed other parts of life. We had our second daughter, so enjoying that and just wanting to make sure if I’m going to come back and give my time and attention to something that I was going to be all in on it.”
The Panthers signed Hunter Renfrow to a one-year contract to bolster their wide receiver room, three days after using the No. 8 pick of the 2025 NFL Draft on Arizona product Tetairoa McMillan.
Renfrow signed a two-year contract extension with the Raiders worth $32 million in 2022 following his 2021 breakout campaign. Renfrow helped the Raiders to a 10-7 finish and a rare playoff appearance (just their second since 2003), but the Cincinnati Bengals eliminated them in the Wild Card Round.
Over his five seasons with the Raiders, Renfrow caught 269 passes for 2,884 yards and 17 touchdowns. He exceeded the 40-catch ad 600-yard marks in each of his first three NFL seasons.
The Panthers haven’t gotten much production at wide receiver since trading D.J. Moore to the Chicago Bears as part of the move-up for Bryce Young in 2023. But with Renfrow and McMillan coming aboard, the Panthers are suddenly deeper at the WR position.
