The Carolina Panthers made Trevin Wallace their biggest roster-cut mistake, losing the young linebacker to the Jets after roster cuts.
A view of a Carolina Panthers helmet on the field before the game against the Los Angeles Rams at Bank of America Stadium.
Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images.
The waiver process has concluded, and the Carolina Panthers’ biggest cutdown-day mistake is no longer hypothetical. The Panthers waived linebacker Trevin Wallace on Sunday, and the New York Jets went on to claim him Monday, eliminating any possibility of bringing him back on the practice squad. The Panthers did not simply move an imperfect young player down the depth chart. They permanently surrendered an experienced, affordable defender at a position where their margin remains thin.
Carolina left little room for trouble at linebacker
The Panthers initially kept only Devin Lloyd, Claudin Cherelus, and seventh-round rookie Jackson Kuwatch at inside linebacker. Bam Martin-Scott went to injured reserve with a designation to return, leaving the active group short on immediate depth.
Carolina improved the room Monday by signing Bobby Okereke after placing Brady Christensen on injured reserve. Okereke supplies proven experience and coverage ability, making his addition a sensible move. His arrival also explains why Wallace lost his path to a starting job beside Lloyd.
It does not explain why the Panthers decided they had no place for Wallace at all.
The current four-man group features Lloyd, Okereke, Cherelus, and Kuwatch. That can function if everyone stays healthy and Okereke transitions quickly. It also leaves Carolina dependent on a late-arriving veteran, a linebacker valued heavily for special teams, and a seventh-round rookie behind Lloyd.
The linebacker, going into his third NFL season, would have provided a fifth option with considerably more defensive experience than the typical player occupying the bottom of a roster.
Wallace offered proven experience and remaining upside
Carolina invested the No. 72 overall selection in Wallace during the 2024 NFL Draft. He appeared in 25 games over his first two seasons, starting 20 and producing 125 tackles and three sacks. He started eight games as a rookie and all 12 games he played in 2025.
That production does not establish Wallace as a quality long-term starter. It does establish that he could enter an NFL defense without the uncertainty attached to an inexperienced reserve.
Wallace also remained only 23, with two affordable seasons left on his rookie contract. Carolina had already absorbed the developmental stage of his career. Waiving him allowed the Jets to inherit whatever improvement might follow without paying the original third-round investment.
His preseason provided another reason for patience. Wallace returned from late-2025 shoulder surgery and played in all four games, finishing with nine tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss, and one quarterback hit. His strongest performance came against Houston’s reserves, but he defeated a pass-blocking running back for a seven-yard sack and stopped the ensuing screen.
That was not enough to prove he deserved a starting position. It was enough to show he was healthy and capable of supplying experienced depth.
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The waiver result separates Wallace from most of Carolina’s other notable departures. Ja’Seem Reed and Isaiah Simmons returned to the practice squad, preserving access to both. Nick Samac was claimed by Minnesota, but the former seventh-round center had a smaller investment and less established role, and the Panthers immediately added Corey Bullock. Jared Harrison-Hunte went unclaimed after the Panthers retained Aaron Hall and traded for TeRah Edwards.
With Wallace, another organization immediately removed Carolina’s safety net.
The Panthers had a defensible case, but not enough
The Panthers can defend the evaluation that placed Wallace behind their other linebackers. He did not win the starting competition against Cherelus. Carolina’s own roster analysis identified special teams as the decisive difference, and that matters for a reserve linebacker expected to dress on game days.
Wallace also carried legitimate performance concerns. His 2025 run defense graded poorly by Pro Football Focus, and his best 2026 exhibition work came late against backups. His shoulder surgery added another consideration, even though he returned for the entire preseason.
Okereke offers more experience, while Cherelus provides stronger special-teams value. Kuwatch gives Carolina a developmental linebacker who can help in that phase. Each individual choice is reasonable.
The problem lies in the overall allocation. The initial roster carried three quarterbacks, five tight ends, and 10 offensive linemen while protecting only three inside linebackers. Those heavier groups had explanations, including Darren Waller’s limited preparation, Feleipe Franks’ special-teams role, and Haynes King’s developmental promise. Still, roster construction requires balancing defensible choices against collective risk.
Carolina did not need to keep Wallace instead of Cherelus or Kuwatch. It needed to create another spot somewhere on the roster and retain all three.
The decision will not define the Panthers’ season, and Wallace may remain a reserve with the Jets. The consequences will instead depend on whether Okereke performs immediately and whether Carolina’s thin linebacker group remains healthy.
That calculation receives its first meaningful test September 13 against the Chicago Bears. The Panthers may never regret losing Wallace, but they surrendered useful insurance before learning whether they could afford to operate without it.
Josh Davis is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints with a focus on MLB. As the founder and creator of OutOfSightSports, Josh spearheads the development and expansion of an engaging social media platform.