Don't miss our podcast, Processing Blue, and subscribe to our newsletter, Access Panthers. This year is crucial for Bryce Young as he seeks to establish himself as a franchise quarterback, and for second-year head coach Dave Canales with his upgraded team. Follow along through training camp, preseason, and the regular season.
Dave Canales and Dan Morgan are going to be busy over the next few days.
As the team prepares for Tuesday’s 53-man roster deadline, Canales, the team’s second-year head coach, and Morgan, the team’s second-year general manager, will need to dissect their 91-man roster as well as the depth charts of the 31 other teams in the league.
While the starting kicker job is the most notable in-house competition to figure out this weekend, the team will also need to weigh the potential of trades before the deadline. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Minnesota Vikings have looked into the possibility of trading for wideout Adam Thielen, who spent his first nine NFL seasons in Minneapolis.
Canales was asked about the potential of a Thielen trade on Friday. The head coach put the onus on the front office when it comes to big roster moves.
“Honestly, I’m letting Dan kind of handle all that right now,” Canales said about a potential Thielen trade. “I’m focused on our team, our football, and Adam’s a part of that. The plans, the plays, all those things, it’s just stuff we’re focused on right now. And you know, we have a lot to talk about in the next couple of days in terms of the roster and all that. But that’s something that I’m going to let them handle, and for me, right now, I’m just focusing on this entire roster and being able to make decisions there.
Carolina Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen, left, speaks with head coach Dave Canales as they watch a replay of Thielen’s touchdown pass reception in the end zone during late first-half action against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Bank of America Stadium on Dec. 1, 2024. The play was initially ruled a touchdown and then overturned. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com
Thielen has been the team’s leading receiver in each of the past two seasons. Despite missing a good chunk of last season with a hamstring injury, he still led the Panthers in catches and receiving yards. He also had his second 100-catch, 1,000-yard season with the Panthers in 2023.
However, the team has added four notable young wideouts over the past two years. The franchise has spent back-to-back first-round picks on Xavier Legette and Tetairoa McMillan, and Carolina plans to feature both players heavily in its offense. Second-year wideout Jalen Coker and sixth-round pick Jimmy Horn Jr. also possess intriguing upside.
If the Panthers trade Thielen, who will replace him?
Former Pro Bowl wideout Hunter Renfrow, who spent last season out of the league, has made his comeback in Carolina this summer and has looked smooth as a route runner when healthy. Renfrow and Coker could potentially fill Thielen’s void in the slot if the veteran were to be traded.
The Panthers also have wideouts David Moore and Brycen Tremayne. Both receivers have made plays on offense and special teams this summer, and trading Thielen could open up roster spots and/or playing time for one or both of them.
“Until the (trade) conversations really get real, there’s really nothing to talk about other than for us to continue to think about where we’re going to be at going into the week that’s coming,” Canales said.
Carolina Panthers safety Nick Scott (21) celebrates Carolina Panthers place kicker Ryan Fitzgerald (35) 52-yard field goal in the second quarter at NRG Stadium on Aug. 16. Thomas Shea USA TODAY NETWORK
Who could be the Panthers’ next kicker?
At kicker, rookie Ryan Fitzgerald and NFL nomad Matthew Wright have battled all summer. However, while Fitzgerald got to work an eventful first half against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday, Wright was forced to watch from the sideline all game. Part of that outlook was luck, as Fitzgerald was given the first half, while Wright was given the second half. The Panthers did all of their scoring and kickoffs in the first two quarters against Pittsburgh.
And while that outcome might lead onlookers to think Fitzgerald has the job locked up, the Panthers might not just be looking for answer internally. For instance, Steelers rookie kicker Ben Sauls, who made all four of his field goal attempts on Thursday, could be used as trade bait with veteran Chris Boswell also on the Pittsburgh roster.
“I feel very confident in both guys,” Canales said about Wright and Fitzgerald. “But I also know there are good kickers out there. But just like every other position, I think we start with the information we have, and then we gotta look at the whole thing, just like we’re going to do with every other position. We gotta look at who’s all out there and how do they stack up? In terms of accuracy in the kicking game — field goals and PATs — and also what guys can bring to us in the kickoff setting. And all that. So that’s going to be a part of these conversations coming up.”
Carolina Panthers tight end James Mitchell celebrates his touchdown pass reception during action against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC on Thursday, August 21, 2025. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com
Carolina hasn’t made any cuts to its roster yet
As for the rest of the roster, the Panthers aren’t tipping their hand. Carolina wants to protect potential practice-squad darlings, and no cuts have been made as of Friday.
Canales, Morgan and their respective staffs will need to scrutinize their roster pretty heavily over the next 48 to 72 hours to find the best initial 53-man roster. From there, they’ll analyze the waiver wire to see if they can enhance the talent from the original group with external players.
“That’s just the nature of it,” Canales said. “The good and the bad, we play on a Thursday, there’s a bunch of games that still have to be played. And you know, our goal is to challenge our roster internally and then challenge it against the rest of the NFL and the film that’s put out there.
“So, there’s a lot of film to still be watched. And it starts with our guys first and foremost, the ones we have the most information on, from the practices, the joint practices, the mock games that we had here, the preseason games. We have a lot of information, but there’s still some more information that’s going to come in down the pipeline this weekend.
“So yeah, with all the deadlines that come up, we kind of naturally start to make those decisions, and then hopefully sometime Wednesday we’ll have the full set roster to be able to start planning the pieces going into our game week.”