Christian McCaffrey has been locked up through 2025. Teddy Bridgewater is replacing Cam Newton at quarterback. Robby Anderson has joined the wide receiver group and Russell Okung will provide a veteran presence at left tackle.
Free agency was good to the Panthers … on offense.
The defensive side of the ball, however, has Carolina in worse shape than it finished last season, when it gave up an 31 rushing touchdowns — eight more than any other NFL team. Seven defensive starters became free agents and only one, safety Tre Boston, was re-signed. With the team focusing largely on the offense in free agency, there are plenty of holes to fill on the defense with the eight picks the Panthers have in the upcoming draft.
“When you look at the defensive side of the ball, I think that’s where we probably haven’t added as much as we have on offense,” general manager Marty Hurney said last week. “So if you were to say, ‘What area do you look at the most,’ it would be defense rather than offense at this point.”
Here’s a look at what the Panthers need and how they could address it:
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DEFENSIVE LINE
LDE: Stephen Weatherly, Efe Obada, Chris Smith.
DT: Kawann Short, Woodrow Hamilton, Zach Kerr.
RDE: Brian Burns, Marquis Haynes, Christian Miller, Smith.
The Panthers’ defensive line is rough. The list of players who have moved on from the group is extensive, especially at the interior.
Weatherly was signed in free agency to bring a veteran presence at defensive end. He had two straight seasons with three sacks and a combined 59 tackles. Kerr was brought in to add depth at nose tackle; he has never found sustained success with a team, but he has had 29-plus tackles twice in his career.
The Panthers also drafted Burns and Miller last year to fit in their then new 3-4 defensive scheme. Former coach Ron Rivera was especially excited for what Burns could do as an edge rusher. Now, with a limited offseason, Burns will have to adapt to Phil Snow’s scheme as more of a 4-3 defensive end.
Carolina hasn’t addressed the line much in free agency. If the season started today, the outlook is bleak. Defensive line will need to be a priority in the draft.
How can they address this in the draft: Auburn’s Derrick Brown and South Carolina’s Javon Kinlaw could make a lot of sense for the Panthers with the seventh overall pick. There could also be a potential to trade back in the first round and still get Kinlaw.
Regardless of whether Carolina takes a defensive lineman in the first round, it’s still an area the Panthers would be wise to address with their remaining seven picks. Baylor defensive tackle James Lynch was the first player coach Matt Rhule recruited when he was the Bears’ coach, and he also seems like a logical fit to join his former college coaching staff in Carolina.
Potential fits on Day 2 or Day 3: DT Ross Blacklock (TCU); DE Yetur Gross-Matos (Penn State); DE Julian Okwara (Notre Dame); EDGE Terrell Lewis (Alabama); DE James Smith-Williams (NC State).
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LINEBACKER
OLB: Shaq Thompson, Jordan Kunaszyk, Jermaine Carter.
MLB: Tahir Whitehead, Andre Smith.
The Panthers aren’t going to be able to replace Luke Kuechly, nor will they try. But they need to get more depth at linebacker. Signing Whitehead, who Rhule has spent time around at Temple, was a good move to have a veteran presence alongside Thompson and give them increased flexibility at the position. But his addition isn’t enough to fulfill their depth needs.
Carter received increased playing time when Thompson was hurt at the end of last year, and Rhule pointed out last week Carolina is interested in what he can do saying, “Jermaine Carter’s a guy that we’re high on.”
How can they address this in the draft: The Panthers have never drafted a player from Clemson, but if Isaiah Simmons is still available at No. 7, he fills a need. Snow said this offseason that he wanted to build his defense around his own players, and Simmons could be used as the the Panthers’ defensive foundation.
If they don’t take Simmons, they can wait until a later round to draft a linebacker.
Potential fits on Day 2 or Day 3: LB Patrick Queen (LSU) if they trade down or possibly early in Round 2; LB Francis Bernard (Utah); LB Willie Gay Jr. (Mississippi State); LB Zach Baun (Wisconsin).
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DEFENSIVE BACK
CB: Donte Jackson, Corn Elder, Dominique Hatfield, Cole Luke.
FS: Tre Boston, TJ Green.
SS: Juston Burris.
The Panthers do not have someone on the roster to replace James Bradberry, who signed with the Giants in free agency, to start opposite Jackson. That’s a major problem.
Bradberry was the team’s top corner last year, and Jackson was benched for the final two games of the season. Not only do the Panthers need Jackson to be dependable, but also they need to find someone to pair with him. Drew Brees, Tom Brady and Matt Ryan are the three quarterbacks they’ll see twice a year, and there was no shortage of discussions about the tough task Bradberry had throughout the 2019 season with the wide receivers he was up against.
Carolina addressed safety in free agency, re-signing Boston to a three-year deal and bringing in Browns defensive back Juston Burris. They could still use depth there after losing Eric Reid, but cornerback is the priority.
How can they address this in the draft: In an ideal world, Ohio State cornerback Jeff Okudah would drop to the seventh overall pick and quickly solve Carolina’s problem. But that’s unlikely — the Panthers have to address the position in later rounds.
This year’s draft has plenty of developmental projects at cornerback, but is light on players the Panthers could plug in as an immediate starter. They need to have drafted a quarterback by the end of the third round.
Potential fits on Day 2 or Day 3: CB A.J. Terrell (Clemson); CB Jeff Gladney (TCU); CB Noah Igbinoghene (Auburn); CB Bryce Hall (VIrginia); S Kyle Dugger (Lenoir-Rhyne); S Ashtyn Davis (Cal).
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