Deep Dive: Carolina Panthers roster review

1. Defensive additions in free agency

Looking to address a unit that gave up the most points of any team in NFL history, the Panthers used free agency to add several defenders coming off career seasons. They signed safety Tre’von Moehrig fresh off a career-high 104 tackle season with the Las Vegas Raiders. They added defensive tackle Tershawn Wharton coming off a career-high 6.5 sacks with the Kansas City Chiefs. Also bolstering their pass rush will be outside linebacker Patrick Jones II with a career-high 7.0 sacks with the Minnesota Vikings. Finally, they added a 332-pound defensive tackle Bobby Brown III off a career high 44 tackles with the Los Angeles Rams.

2. Big target for Bryce Young

While the Panthers posted 30th-ranked passing offense in 2024, they finished the season stronger then they began it. Upon regaining the starting job in Week 8, quarterback Bryce Young closed the season strong completing 197 of his 319 attempts (61.8%) for 2,104 yards (210.4 per game) with 15 touchdowns and only six interceptions in the final 10 games of the season, with the Panthers securing a 4-6 record down the stretch.

To help Young continue trending in the right direction, the Panthers selected wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan with the eighth pick. The 6-foot-5, 212-pounder out of Arizona ranked third in the FBS with 1,319 receiving yards on 84 receptions with eight receiving touchdowns. He joins a team in need of a premier receiving option with Adam Thielen pacing the Panthers in receiving yards in 2024 with 615.

3. Derrick Brown back in action

A big piece in the Panthers defensive struggles in 2024 was losing Pro Bowl defensive end Derrick Brown with a meniscus injury in their season opener against the Saints. Brown dominated when he was last on the field with a record-setting campaign in 2023 with 103 tackles, an NFL record for most tackles by a defensive lineman in a season (since 1994). Brown figures to be an important piece as the Panthers look to climb from the bottom of league ranks on defense.

“Man, we take it as a challenge,” Brown said. “Nobody wants to finish last in defense in the NFL. It’s not a very nice trophy to hang on the wall there, but it’s one that, it is what it is. So now, I mean, we’ve got to go out there, we’ve got to execute, we’ve got to get back to doing what we do.”