Panthers' post-free agency depth chart: Where the holes remain before NFL Draft (2024)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It’s become somewhat industry standard to cobble together depth charts following the NFL Draft to look ahead to OTAs, training camp and the upcoming season.

My sports editor sent me one I did last April after the Panthers took Bryce Young first overall. And while I had Young and pretty much all the starters pegged correctly, it appears I was a bit too bullish on a few of the backups — specifically guys like Sam Tecklenburg, Larnel Coleman, Brandon Smith and Bumper Pool (whose name suggested greatness at linebacker).

At any rate, a post-draft depth chart will show up on these pages in late April or early May. In the meantime, it seemed like it might be instructive to examine where the holes exist on the depth chart preceding the draft. New general manager Dan Morgan and executive VP of football operations Brandt Tilis filled several of the needs during free agency. But gaps remain. some at significant spots.

Let’s depth chart.

Offense

Position / Starter / Second team / *Third team

* Where applicable

Quarterback: Bryce Young / Andy Dalton / HOLE

The Panthers only kept two quarterbacks active on game days last season, with Dalton starting at Seattle in the only game Young missed. But first-year coach Dave Canales indicated at the owners’ meetings last month he plans to take advantage of the recently revised rule making it easier for teams to dress a third QB, and would prefer a veteran in that spot. So this isn’t a need that will be addressed in the draft. But it’s something to monitor in the coming weeks.

Running back: Chuba Hubbard / Miles Sanders / Raheem Blackshear

The top three backs from last season remain on the roster, although the pecking order changed during Sanders’ disappointing first year in Carolina. But because Canales has said (and demonstrated last season in Tampa) he’s a proponent of a strong running game, this is a position where the Panthers could add during the draft. The Panthers reportedly brought in two of the top three highest-rated backs on Dane Brugler’s board — Texas’ Jonathon Brooks and Florida State’s Trey Benson — for pre-draft visits.

Wide receiver: Diontae Johnson / Terrace Marshall Jr.

Wide receiver: Adam Thielen / Ihmir Smith-Marsette

Wide receiver: HOLE / Jonathan Mingo

I didn’t list third-teamers because no team goes nine deep at receiver. But the Panthers are barely five deep as currently constructed, even with the addition of Johnson via a trade with Pittsburgh. The Panthers moved on from DJ Chark and Laviska Shenault, but re-signed Smith-Marsette, an electric returner who replaced the injured Shenault as the gadget receiver last season. The Panthers should use one of their two second-round picks on a receiver, and Young probably wouldn’t be sad to see Morgan bring in another wideout either later in the draft or at roster cutdowns.

Tight end: Tommy Tremble / Ian Thomas / HOLE

Thomas gets slotted as the second-teamer here, but he’s become almost exclusively a blocking tight end after six NFL seasons. The Panthers need a receiving tight end to complement Tremble after cutting Hayden Hurst following his disappointing, one-year stint in Charlotte. Stephen Sullivan, the former LSU tight end, is a big target and has shown flashes. But Young missed having a dependable option (besides Thielen) in the middle of the field as a rookie.

Left tackle: Ikem Ekwonu / Brady Christensen

Left guard: Damien Lewis / Chandler Zavala

Center: Austin Corbett / HOLE

Right guard: Robert Hunt / Cade Mays

Right tackle: Taylor Moton / Yosh Nijman

The Panthers made a huge investment at guard with the signings of Hunt and Lewis, who have a strong history as pass protectors and should help provide Young cleaner throwing lanes. Canales is confident Corbett will make a smooth transition from right guard to center, a position he hasn’t played since early in his career at Cleveland. But it would behoove the Panthers to bring in another center as a contingency plan/insurance policy for Corbett, who is coming off a pair of surgeries on his left knee.

Defense

Defensive end: Derrick Brown / LaBryan Ray

Nose tackle: Shy Tuttle / Nick Thurman

Defensive end: A’Shawn Robinson / HOLE

After locking up Brown with a four-year, $96 million extension and signing Robinson to a three-year, $22.5 million contract, the starters along the three-man front look stout. The Panthers also feel good about their rotational guys after receiving contributions from Thurman and Ray last season. But a young impact player for the interior is a sneaky need for Ejiro Evero’s defense.

Outside linebacker: Jadeveon Clowney / K’Lavon Chaisson / Amare Barno

Outside linebacker: D.J. Wonnum / HOLE / DJ Johnson

Imagine what this section of the depth chart would have looked like without the addition of Clowney, the Rock Hill, S.C., native who returned to the Carolinas on a two-year, $20 million contract (with incentives that could push it to $24 million). The 31-year-old Clowney should fill the void left by Brian Burns’ departure if he can stay healthy and come close to replicating his 9 1/2-sack season last year in Baltimore. Wonnum averaged nearly six sacks over four seasons with the Vikings. But the rest of the edge group won’t keep offensive coordinators up at night.

Inside linebacker: Shaq Thompson / Chandler Wooten / Claudin Cherelus

Inside linebacker: Josey Jewell / HOLE / Tae Davis

The Panthers lost two of their top six tacklers from last season when Frankie Luvu and Kamu Grugier-Hill left in free agency. The two accounted for 17 percent of the team’s 1,012 total tackles. Thompson is back after missing most of 2023 with a fractured fibula. He’ll be joined in the starting lineup by Jewell, who had his best season in 2022 when Evero was Denver’s defensive coordinator. But there’s a need behind those two, as the current backups are primarily special teams contributors.

Cornerback: Jaycee Horn / Troy Hill / D’Shawn Jamison

Cornerback: HOLE / Dane Jackson / DiCaprio Bootle

The 5-11, 180-pound Jackson was a full-time starter for only one of his four seasons in Buffalo, although Evero praised his instincts, toughness and production. “He’s done it really his whole life, played at a high level and overcome what others have always thought of him,” Evero said. Still, it seems likely the starting spot opposite Horn will be filled either high in the draft or by veteran free-agent Stephon Gilmore, who has a “huge fan” in Evero.

Safety: Jordan Fuller / Nick Scott / Alex Cook

Safety: Xavier Woods / Sam Franklin Jr. / Jammie Robinson

The Panthers remade their safety room with the signings of Fuller and Scott, both of whom played for the Rams when Evero and defensive passing game coordinator Jonathan Cooley were on Sean McVay’s staff. Scott, who was with Cincinnati last year, essentially swapped spots with Vonn Bell, who returned to the Bengals after Carolina cut him one season into his three-year deal.

Special teams

Kicker: Eddy Pineiro

Punter: Johnny Hekker

Long snapper: JJ Jansen

Same as it ever was.

(Top photo of A’Shawn Robinson, Diontae Johnson, Jadaveon Clowney: Mike Lawrence, Jane Gershovich, Nick Cammett / Getty Images)