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Carolina Panthers Roster Projection


Jeremy Igo
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21 hours ago, Jeremy Igo said:

As always, throughout OTA's and through the preseason I will be providing a look into what the Carolina Panthers roster may look like. 

The roster projection will be adjusted according to performance and snap counts. 

Here is my initial roster projection for the 2016 Carolina Panthers

 

2016 Panthers Roster Projection

 

OFFENSE 25

Quarterback (3)

Cam Newton

Derek Anderson

Joe Webb

 

Tight End (3)

Greg Olsen

Ed Dickson

Beau Sandland

 

Note: The Panthers have signed a plethora of tight ends, trying to find an eventual replacement for Dickson. Sandland is it. They do not, however, have the luxury of keeping four tight ends when depth is needed elsewhere. 


Wide Receiver (5)

Kelvin Benjamin

Devin Funchess

Ted Ginn

Stephen Hill

Philly Brown

 

Note: Only 5 receivers are kept as the depth here is outstanding compared to other positions. This unit is 1000% improved over the unit only two seasons ago. Stephen Hill is the x-factor here with both size and speed. The Panthers remain convinced of his potential.

 

Running Back (3)

Jonathan Stewart

Cameron Artis-Payne

Brandon Wegher

 

Note: The Panthers can no longer keep four running backs this season. Fozzy Whitaker is the odd man out here, Brandon Wegher stays as the younger player with more upside. 

 

Full Back (1)

Mike Tolbert

 

Offensive Line (10)

Michael Oher

Mike Remmers

Daryl Williams

Trai Turner

Andrew Norwell

Ryan Kalil

Chris Scott

Gino Gradkowski

David Foucault

(Insert Free Agent Here)

Note: Yeah, the free agent deal is a bit of a cop out on my part, but I just don’t see any other way around it. The Panthers are very very thin at offensive tackle currently, and the roster as it reads today is filled out with practice squad players. Look for an OL signing before the season starts. 


Defense (25)

 

Defensive Line (9)

Kony Ealy

Charles Johnson

Star Lotulelei

Kawann Short

Vernon Butler

Paul Soliai

Mario Addison

Wes Horton

Ryan Delaire

 

Linebacker (6)

Thomas Davis

Luke Kuechly

Shaq Thompson

AJ Klein

David Mayo

Jeremy Cash

Note: How does Cash make the team at his small size? By replacing LB Ben Jacobs as a special teams ace. 


Cahnuh (5)

Bene Benwikere

James Bradberry

Daryl Worley

Zack Sanchez

Lou Young

Note: I just do not see the Panthers signing a veteran cahnuh of note. They would not have cut Boykin if that was in the cards. The Panthers like Lou Young very much. Could be a nice season for him. 

 

Safety (5)

Kurt Coleman

Tre Boston

Dean Marlowe

Colin Jones

Marcus Ball

 

Note: Colin Jones has shown he can drop down and be a buffalo nickel when needed, so he counts as both a safety and cahnuh spot as an x-factor. Add in his special teams contributions and he is a very valuable player.


Special Teams (3)

Graham Gano

Swayze Waters

JJ Jansen

 

So there you have it, my initial 2016 Carolina Panthers Roster Prediction. Well liked players such as Keyarris Garrett and Damiere Byrd are by no means out of the picture, but as of today they have work to do if they plan on making the team. This should make for great training camp competition. 

Remember, if you disagree you cannot simply add in a player without telling me who you would take off. Many folks like to do that and pretend there is no player limit. 

 

 

 

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I think Cox makes it over Horton. Also Garrett over Hill. Another change would be Rock Head and the TE out Duke will make the 53 over Dickerson and Ball. Rock Head will replace Tolbert next year so I think DG wants to give him some time with the 1st team during the season. I feel like the TE out of Duke has some real potential.

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OK, I'm in total agreement with Defense with the caveat that Cox may beat out Declaire or Horton.

As for offense, there are several battles lining up:

Hill vs Garrett (does Norwood or Byrd fight their way onto the roster??)

Wegher vs Fozzy 

Foulcault vs Rigsbee (I know Rigsbee projects as a guard in the NFL, but Ron loves versatility in his back up O-linemen , and frankly Foulcault has shown nothing that would make me believe that he shouldn't have stayed in Canada)

Mostly, I'm just happy to be actually talking football, even if it is speculative!

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On 5/19/2016 at 10:29 AM, Promethean Forerunner said:

I think if Garrett has a great camp and preseason, he'll send either Hill or Brown packing. That's just me. The Panthers might love Hill's combination of size and speed but his hands are worse than Ginn's.

I agree.  This will be the most difficult decision for the season.  It may get nasty.

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On 5/19/2016 at 10:21 AM, Jeremy Igo said:

Tight End (3)

Greg Olsen

Ed Dickson

Beau Sandland

 

Note: The Panthers have signed a plethora of tight ends, trying to find an eventual replacement for Dickson. Sandland is it. They do not, however, have the luxury of keeping four tight ends when depth is needed elsewhere. 

 

Panthers release TE's McGee and Bonnett

You all really need to start paying attention to these projections. 

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1 hour ago, Jeremy Igo said:

 

Sorry, can't get rid of this damn quote box.

We've kept four TEs for the last few years, though one of them could be more accurately be designated as a FB. For this reason I viewed Rockhead and Bonnet as competing for the same spot; even if the positions are officially different, the roles would be similar.

But now with Bonnet out of the picture, the fourth TE (Simonson) could be replaced by an extra, more traditional fullback. Basically I think 8 spots will be divided between RB, FB and TE. 

Edited by jdpanther5
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