Carolina Panthers Nic Scourton talks to a coach during the Carolina Panthers Rookie Minicamp in Charlotte, N.C., on Saturday, May 10, 2025. KHADEJEH NIKOUYEH Knikouyeh@charlotteobserver.com
Rookie orientation is over, and it’s time for the Carolina Panthers to get down to business.
With the bulk of the roster construction process done, the Panthers have a 90-man roster that is — for the most part — completed heading into the heart of the offseason program. The squad has improved its wideout room significantly and positioned the front seven to be vastly upgraded in 2025.
So, where do the Panthers go from here? This beat writer has some thoughts heading into organized team activities later this month.
Youth at outside linebacker needs to step up quickly
The release of veteran outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney took some by surprise last week. But in hindsight, the team’s overt desire to get younger made the move somewhat inevitable. Will that be a wise decision in the end? Only time will tell, but the decision places pressure on a pair of young veteran players and a couple of rookies to make the Panthers look smart.
The team saved $7.78 million in cap space by releasing Clowney. That’s not an insignificant amount of spending money, and unfortunately, due to years of roster tinkering by the previous regime, the current group’s options for alternative funds were limited. Sure, they could have extended right tackle Taylor Moton, who turns 31 later this year, and lowered his massive cap number, but that would have gone against the team’s clear desire to have a long-term youth movement. Instead, they’ll play the wait-and-see game with Moton and the outside linebacker position.
Carolina Panthers Princely Umanmielen warms up during the Carolina Panthers Rookie Minicamp in Charlotte, N.C., on Saturday, May 10, 2025. KHADEJEH NIKOUYEH Knikouyeh@charlotteobserver.com
As we’ve documented before, Ejiro Evero — at least in his three-year history as a defensive coordinator — hasn’t rushed to start rookies early in the season. In Denver, Nik Bonnito (a 2024 Pro Bowl pass rusher) started one of the 15 games in which he appeared during his rookie year and was inactive for the first two matchups of that campaign. Panthers draft picks like D.J. Johnson, Jammie Robinson, Trevin Wallace, Chau Smith-Wade and Demani Richardson all had to wait for significant injuries or extremely poor play to get on the field on defense over the past two years. So, it’ll be interesting to see if Evero moves away from that trend with second-round pick Nic Scourton and third-round pick Princely Umanmielen.
GM Dan Morgan has, at least on the surface, taken away the ability to be completely patient with rookie playing time. Even if D.J. Wonnum and the newly signed Patrick Jones start in the rotation, the Panthers will still need contributions from Scourton and Umanmielen early. And that’s fine — as Scourton is a sound run defender, and Umanmielen projects as an immediate rotational pass rusher. The rookies can fill roles, but Wonnum and Jones are going to need to steer the rotation.
Wonnum is in a contract year, and Jones has a incentive-heavy two-year contract. They already had motivation to deliver early and often this year. But with Clowney gone, the pair of former Minnesota Vikings edge defenders will need to be productive immediately.
Big competition brewing at wide receiver
Without question, this is the deepest the wideout room has looked (on paper) in Carolina in a while. First-round pick Tetairoa McMillan, sixth-round pick Jimmy Horn Jr. and the undrafted additions, like Kobe Hudson and Jacolby George, have infused upgraded talent and depth.
The Panthers are likely to start McMillan, last year’s first-round pick Xavier Legette, and veteran slot receiver Adam Thielen in three-receiver looks in 2025. Beyond those three, a competition is brewing.
Carolina Panthers rookie wide receiver Jimmy Horn Jr., runs through drills with his teammates during the team’s rookie minicamp practice on Friday, May 9, 2025. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com
With Jalen Coker, David Moore and Dan Chisena returning from last year, they’ll be pushed by the likes of Horn, Hudson, George and veteran Hunter Renfrow, who took last year off to deal with his health. Realistically, the team has somewhere between seven and 10 roster-worthy wideouts. This summer will be about finding the best options behind the starting trio. All of those depth guys will need to fit into rotational roles as well as stand out on special teams. Coker and Moore have the advantage in roles department, while Chisena has the advantage with special teams.
Still, Horn is lightning fast, and he feels like a dynamic complement to McMillan, Legette and Thielen. Horn can also return kicks and punts, so he provides special teams value as well. Tentatively, it seems like Horn and Coker are probably the ideal fourth and fifth guys if the long-term youth operation factors in.
If the Panthers keep six (possible) or seven (unlikely) wideouts, do they really want to keep more than two rookies on the active depth chart? Hudson, George and Muhsin Muhammad III will need to prove they belong over someone like Moore, who came up big in key wins down the stretch, or Chisena, who is a noted special teams ace with track speed.
Still light in secondary depth
The Panthers spent just one draft pick — a fourth-round selection — on a defensive back in April. The secondary was already light on experience and standouts, and the lack of reinforcements — at least at a premium cost — has kept the defensive backfield depth shallow.
The Panthers feel really good about their well-paid starting cornerbacks, Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson, entering Year 2 of their collaboration. The squad is also excited about their top free-agent addition, safety Tre’von Moehrig, leading the charge. But beyond that trio, there’s some murkiness.
Lathan Ransom, the team’s lone drafted rookie defensive back, projects as an immediate contributor, if Evero goes against his previous rookie usage. However, it would be odd to see Evero go from being evidently patient with one or two rookies every year to starting multiple rookies in Week 1. Ransom, at worst, should be a sub-package player to begin the season.
Carolina Panthers rookie safety Lathan Ransom, left and safety Isaac Gifford, right, walk to the team’s rookie minicamp practice on Friday, May 9, 2025. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com
The team has openly acknowledged that it is still looking for safety help, and Julian Blackmon and Marcus Williams — who visited the team in March — remain unsigned. Former Denver Broncos safety Justin Simmons, who previously played under Evero, is also available. The team brought in undrafted safeties Jack Henderson, Isaac Gifford and Trevian Thomas to compete for depth roles against Richardson and Nick Scott.
At cornerback, the depth is light on experience. Smith-Wade should be considered the favorite to start as the primary nickel corner. Beyond him, though, is a group that has little defensive production. Akayleb Evans is the lone player with starting experience after he flamed out of Minnesota. The team likes Shemar Bartholomew on special teams, but his work at corner has yet to be significantly explored. Undrafted rookies like Mike Reid, Corey Thornton and JaTravis Broughton will provide some competition during the summer, but they are first-year players. MJ Devonshire, who was claimed off waivers following the draft, is interesting but he has never played in a regular-season game.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Panthers go back to the free-agent well once or twice (or even three times) in the secondary during the summer. Of the position groups on the roster, the secondary feels the most open-ended heading into OTAs.
Not forcing a pick on a kicker was the right move
The Panthers ended up using eight picks in the draft and none were dedicated to a kicker. That decision should prove to a wise choice, even if the projected offseason competition between Matthew Wright and undrafted rookie Ryan Fitzgerald falters.
From 2020 to 2024, 11 kickers were selected in the draft. Of those 11, only six remain with the team that drafted them. Of the five who are elsewhere, none lasted longer than a year on their original team’s active roster. Three of those castaways aren’t even in the league anymore.
Carolina Panthers Ryan Fitzgerald during the Carolina Panthers Rookie Minicamp in Charlotte, N.C., on Saturday, May 10, 2025. KHADEJEH NIKOUYEH Knikouyeh@charlotteobserver.com
So, the odds aren’t great when it comes to drafting kickers, especially with an average of two or three being draft-worthy every year. Waiting things out and signing Fitzgerald was a prudent move, because even if Fitzgerald doesn’t work out, the team didn’t pass on the chance to draft nose tackle Cam Jackson, tight end Mitchell Evans or wideout Jimmy Horn Jr. to select him.
Fitzgerald is house money, and he is coming off a two-year stretch where he missed just two of his 34 field-goal attempts at Florida State. He also made all five of his attempts from 50 or more yards last year.
If Fitzgerald fails this summer, it won’t be because the Panthers had a bad process. Carolina also has some options in case Fitzgerald and/or Wright bomb their auditions. Piñeiro is still out there, and former Indianapolis Colts kicker Rodrigo Blankenship is having a phenomenal campaign in the United Football League this year. Blankenship should become available at the conclusion of the spring league in June.
The Charlotte Observer
Mike Kaye covers the Carolina Panthers for The Charlotte Observer. Kaye previously covered the entire NFL for Pro Football Network, the Philadelphia Eagles for NJ Advance Media and the Jacksonville Jaguars for First Coast News. He is a graduate of the University of North Florida.