The Carolina Panthers front office clearly had a plan going into free agency: go all out to add more talent at all three levels of what was their league-worst defense in 2024. Aside from adding running back Rico Dawdle, almost all of Carolina’s notable moves so far this offseason have gone into improving that side of the ball.
That’s understandable, given how poorly the unit performed last year despite having a well-respected defensive coordinator in Ejiro Evero. However, the Panthers are also pretty far behind the competition when it comes to the skill positions on offense. They have a strong offensive line and a solid backfield, but their weapons at wide receiver and tight end are about as bad as it ges at this level.
Don’t believe us? Just observe the latest pass-catcher group rankings from Rotoballers, where the Panthers WR/TEs rank 30th in the league, at the top of their “UFL” category along with the lowly Tennessee Titans and New England Patriots.
To be fair, this group is still very-much a work in progress and it would come as a surprise if they do not add both a wide receiver and a tight end before the later rounds of the draft. Xavier Legette, Jalen Coker and Ja’Tavion Sanders may all develop into capable pass-catching playmakers. However, for now this is a top-heavy group, where only Adam Thielen is a proven better-than-average option.
Assuming that they’re about done making splashes in free agency, improving the wide receiver corps and the tight end group have to be at or near the top of the team’s to-do list going into the draft.
