{"id":706945,"date":"2026-01-26T18:27:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T18:27:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/706945\/"},"modified":"2026-01-26T18:27:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T18:27:16","slug":"pff-makes-plain-carolina-panthers-biggest-offseason-priority","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/706945\/","title":{"rendered":"PFF Makes Plain Carolina Panthers’ Biggest Offseason Priority"},"content":{"rendered":"

Carolina Panthers<\/a>\u2019 general manager Dan Morgan did a solid job last offseason adding talent and bringing the franchise back from two troubling seasons. The team did finish below .500 in 2025 for the eighth consecutive year, but the good news was that Dave Canales\u2019s club<\/a> finished 8-9 and won the NFC South <\/a>for the first time since 2015. It was certainly a sign of progress after the Panthers were a combined 7-27 from 2023-24.<\/p>\n

Now it\u2019s back to business for the club. Via Spotrac<\/a>, Morgan has numerous decisions to make on the team\u2019s current personnel in terms of pending unrestricted (20), restricted (4), and exclusive rights (2) free agents. There are two wide receivers in the latter category. Bradley Locker<\/a> of Pro Football Focus notes that Jalen Coker<\/a> is Carolina\u2019s highest-graded potential free agent.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Panthers\u2019 passing game didn\u2019t excel as many anticipated this year,\u201d explained Locker, \u201cplacing 26th in EPA per play. In large part, Coker\u2019s availability influenced those results. The second-year wideout played just 498 snaps\u2014all in Week 7 or later\u2014but was efficient when on the field, yielding a 75.3 PFF receiving grade with a 116.7 passer rating when targeted.”<\/p>\n

\"Jalen<\/p>\n

Jan 10, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker (18) scores defended by Los Angeles Rams safety Kam Curl (3) during the second half of the NFC Wild Card Round game between the Carolina Panthers and the Los Angeles Rams at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\u201cThe good news for Carolina is that Coker,\u201d added Locker, \u201cshould be retained as an exclusive rights free agent, presumably giving Bryce Young<\/a> another young weapon back in the saddle.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the team\u2019s final 11 games, the former undrafted free agent totaled 33 catches for 394 yards and three scores. He followed that up with nine receptions for 134 yards and a touchdown in the Panthers\u2019 34-31 wild card loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Coker has no negotiation power being an ERFA, however the underrated performer has perhaps earned more than just a one-year deal after his second solid campaign.<\/p>\n

Morgan struck gold last April with the eighth overall selection in wideout Tetairoa McMillan<\/a>, however 2024 first-rounder Xavier Legette has yet to make a steady impact. Meanwhile, Coker is an emerging player that reached the end zone in four of his last six overall appearances. <\/p>\n

– Enjoy more free Panthers coverage with Carolina Panthers on SI –<\/p>\n

Panthers linked to controversial wide receiver in NFL free agency<\/a><\/p>\n

PFF expects Panthers to make shocking choice in NFL draft<\/a><\/p>\n

Carolina Panthers officially had second-best NFL rookie class in 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

NFL insider suggests Broncos add Cam Newton after Bo Nix injury<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Carolina Panthers\u2019 general manager Dan Morgan did a solid job last offseason adding talent and bringing the franchise…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":706946,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2075],"tags":[235,260,2567,7,6,236],"class_list":{"0":"post-706945","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-carolina-panthers","8":"tag-carolina","9":"tag-carolina-panthers","10":"tag-carolinapanthers","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-nfl","13":"tag-panthers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/706945","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=706945"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/706945\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/706946"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=706945"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=706945"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=706945"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}