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I mean.. man it really sucks Icky got hurt.. completely changed our offseason plans.. That said, letting Mays test the market is not bad. It allows us to geta comp pick for him if there is a strong market or allows us to try to bring him back at an affordable rate.

We need to draft OL, but if our OL is meh at best, it will help answer the Bryce question. Not advocating for trotting out a bad OL on purpose by any means, but in the continued up and down assessment on Bryce, I don't want the decision to be made solely around when he has "perfect" circumstances around him. Bryce has 2 years left on his contract, and I'm sure we're planning on using every bit of it to assess him unless he balls this year, or fails miserably. If not having a quality LT means we suck, we're draft high and get a new QB. If our OL is eh, but Bryce plays well, he's answering questions. Again, not advocating for ignoring the position because I'd prefer to constantly pour resources into the OL, but we can't or won't always have a Top 10 OL for the duration of his career here. poo or get off the pot time, because the 2027 draft class might be too good to pass up if we even *think* we need a QB.

Absolutely. LaMelo is our best playmaker and Brandon's our best pure scorer but Kon is consistently solid at both. We need at least two of them to have a big scoring night to win games and that's a lot easier to do when we can count on Kon to be the floor. Enjoy the luxury of this trio in Charlotte while it lasts.

Next up Caldwell!

Sounds like Coby will play against the bulls. Let's see how they look the next 10 games. I think anything less than 7-3 would be disappointing

Not dead. He just works somewhere else

Bryce will be complete ass if the O-line isn’t top 10 or better so you have to shore up the tackles.

Observer article I left out the specialists which is the 3rd position Panthers haven’t drafted three positions under Morgan: Will that change in 2026? Mike Kaye [email protected] 4 hrs ago The Carolina Panthers, two years into the Dan Morgan-Dave Canales era, have yet to draft an offensive lineman. That is likely to change in 2026. The organization has selected three wide receivers, two tight ends, two running backs, two defensive backs, two defensive linemen and two outside linebackers during the shared reign of Morgan and Canales. Those multiple selections at several positions have come at the expense of the offensive line. But there are other positions that have been avoided, too. With the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine ongoing in Indianapolis, let’s take a look at the three notable positions evaded by the organization over the past two drafts: Quarterback Last time position was drafted by Panthers:Bryce Young (first round, 2023) Impending free agents at the position: N/A Current depth chart under contract: Young, Andy Dalton The Panthers can’t really be criticized for not selecting a quarterback over the past two years. The team invested a ton of draft capital in Young while trading up for the first overall pick in 2023. Young has legitimately rebounded from a brutal rookie year and a whirlwind 2024 season that saw him get benched for roughly a third of the campaign. The Heisman trophy-winning passer posted career-high numbers in 2025, and the Panthers have already publicly noted that they will pick up the fifth-year option on his rookie contract. So, Young will be under contract through at least the 2027 season. His longtime veteran backup, Andy Dalton, is entering the final year of his deal. Morgan hasn’t minced words when discussing his desire to add a younger QB behind Young. The Panthers are hoping to contend long term, and they’ll need to manage costs throughout the roster in order to retain their top-tier talent. Drafting a quarterback on Day 3 could provide the Panthers with a cost-effective backup for Young for years to come. That savings could then help them invest elsewhere. Dalton is guaranteed $2 million this season. If he were to be traded, the Panthers would save $4 million on the salary cap. That’s probably not enough savings to force a move, but given Morgan’s outlook on getting younger, it could lead to at least some consideration. Dalton, 38, could also be bounced if the Panthers decide to target it a younger journeyman QB in free agency. The backup quarterback spot has some offseason intrigue for the first time in a while. Offensive line Last time position was drafted by Panthers:G Chandler Zavala (fourth round, 2023) Impending free agents at the position: C Cade Mays, OT Yosh Nijman, G/C Austin Corbett, T/C Brady Christensen, G/T Jake Curhan Current depth chart under contract: LT Ickey Ekwonu, LG Damien Lewis, C Nick Samac, RG Rob Hunt, RT Taylor Moton, Zavala, Ja’Tyre Carter, Joshua Gray, Saahdiq Charles The Panthers are set at three of their five starting positions on the offensive line. However, their outlooks at left tackle and center are certainly unenviable. Ekwonu ruptured his patellar tendon in the playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams last month. And despite being due $17.5 million in the final year of his rookie contract, Ekwonu might miss a good portion of the 2026 seasonfollowing a notable knee surgery. Mays, the starting center, is set to become a free agent in March. While he’s played quite well over the past two years, the Panthers might need to pass on re-signing him to improve other positions on the open market. Mays was cut by Carolina in 2024 and lost the 2025 center battle to Corbett this past summer. So, there’s reason to believe the Panthers aren’t totally sold on him being a long-term answer, either. With all that said, both positions have quite a bit of fluidity. Having Hunt and Lewis at the guard spots might make Morgan feel better about putting a rookie at center in 2026. The same sentiment, though, probably can’t be said about left tackle, as the Panthers will want to reinforce Young’s blind side with Ekwonu shelved. Nijman is likely among the internal free agents who Morgan wants to re-sign, and if that pact happens, look for the Panthers to be patient at tackle in the draft. With Christensen, Curhan, Corbett, Nijman and Mays all set to hit the market, the Panthers are likely to have several new faces on the offensive line depth chart in training camp. The Panthers will probably make multiple moves in the trenches during free agency and the draft. Selecting a long-term swing tackle with starter upside — especially with Ekwonu set to hit free agency in 2027 — seems inevitable.

Making the playoffs as quickly as he did after what he inherited was impressive. He inherited the worst team in the league with a depleted roster, missing draft picks, and a QB who just had a historically bad rookie season. I mean it's hard to get much worse. I wish he would hire someone to call plays because I think that's his weakness, but maybe he can get better there as he gets experience.

Sheesh. If Bryce had won the Super Bowl, y'all woulda been like "He didn't win by enough. He missed that pass in the third quarter." fug it. We went to the playoffs, no matter how we got there and played a helluva game where we came up just a bit short of advancing. It's been a long time since we even made it to the post season for anything. But hey, keep punching yourself in the nuts because you think that's what you need to do.

If Mays has a market, which it seems he will, he's gone. I think we bring back Nijman for too much money to be cautious at LT, Corbett comes back cheap since he's already said he wants to live in CLT, and Christensen eventually gets re-signed with the hopes he can be depth at some point. Draft an OT, draft a C. The OL might be rough for stretches next year, but time to get some youth there to prepare for Bryce in 2027 or the next QB. I still think we compete for the division in 2026 and can go back to the playoffs unlike the oddsmakers in Vegas, but the *real* year is 2027 IMO. Either Bryce has proven it and he's the QB looking at his 2nd contract, or we have the ready-made team for the next rookie QB or Vet we trade for.

Dumb

The Panthers are going to have a lot more flexibility in free agency than it looks like at first glance. On paper, the cap space might seem tight, but there are several obvious restructure candidates that could easily free up significant room. Between converting base salaries into signing bonuses and spreading cap hits out over future years, Carolina could realistically clear $60–80 million in additional space if they wanted to be aggressive. That kind of flexibility means they’re not stuck. They can extend key young pieces, add help along the offensive line, upgrade the defense, and still be strategic about value signings. Letting Cade Mays test the market makes sense from a leverage standpoint. If he’s willing to come back on a team-friendly deal, great, continuity on the line matters. But if his market price climbs, the Panthers should absolutely explore upgrades. The point is, this front office isn’t boxed in. With cap maneuvering and smart structuring, they have the ability to be active players in free agency rather than sitting on the sidelines like we are used too.

Man, that is a lot of guys that played meaningful snaps for us last year we are letting test free agency... Kind of worried we are going to lose Yosh

With his play the last few years, pretty sure he quit the league 4 or 5 years ago...

No he’s not. Look at this actual production. Is he getting anywhere near 90 targets with us? Kmet’s career is 288-2939 and 21 TDs on 399 targets. Tremble (the definition of meh) has 112-1031 and 11 TDs on 168 targets. Prorated to 399 targets, Tremble has 266-2448 and 26 TDs. Kmet isn’t making us much better at all. We just don’t use TEs that much and we don’t throw the ball overall as much. Kmet isn’t Greg Olsen.

It’s being said the Bears are going to release him

Bozeman quit the league today so there is another C job open.

Agree. I think we bring back Corbett as Cade is as good as gone

Bold strategy.

Draft a center. We have too much money tied up on the OL to re-sign/sign a FA. One of them needs to be a on a rookie deal.

Based on a number of things that the NFL keeps secret so they can award them to whoever they want to

"Center Cade Mayes was not expected back and will hit the free-agent market in March. Sources here at the Shrine Bowl expect the [Houston] Texans to make a run at Mayes once free agency opens to fill the hole they have at center. Mayes, a sixth-round pick by Carolina in 2022, has started 27 games for the Panthers, including 20 over the past two seasons." - Tony Pauline

Are comp picks simply awarded based on FA deficit or is their new contract amount relevant?

A friend of mine worked at Johnson & Whales. Cam contacted the school and wanted cooking lessons at his home. The staff that participated said he was as cool as one can be changing preconceived notions people had going in to it.