Projecting the Panthers’ 53-man roster: Key injuries will make for tough decisions
Carolina losing two quarterbacks to injury over its final two preseason games is far from ideal.
But NFL decision-makers earn their keep navigating chaos. General manager Scott Fitterer and coach Matt Rhule have some critical decisions to make this week, starting with finding a new kicker and accurately identifying the best 53-man roster for the 2022 Carolina Panthers.
Sam Darnold’s injury makes him a shoo-in injured reserve candidate. But the Panthers shouldn’t be in a rush to move him there. Instead, waiting until Wednesday to place Darnold on IR would provide Carolina with short-term roster flexibility. The team could keep him on the initial 53-man roster and then move him to IR, opening up an additional spot for any surprise cuts around the league.
Small moves like that can help offset Carolina’s unfortunate injury luck at two critical positions. Keeping two quarterbacks opens the possibility of keeping an extra defensive back or wide receiver as well.
Teams have until 4 p.m. Tuesday to cut their rosters down to 53 players.
Let’s explore the Panthers’ options ahead of Tuesday’s 53-man roster deadline:
Quarterback (3)
Safe: Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, PJ Walker
Notable cut: None. The team already placed rookie Matt Corral on IR. Darnold should soon follow.
I thought Carolina should keep three quarterbacks even after Corral’s season-ending injury. Now keeping three quarterbacks is the most logical choice.
Darnold should start the week on the 53-man roster then move to IR on Wednesday, allowing Carolina an open spot after cuts are made around the league.
Running back (3)
Safe: Christian McCaffrey, Chuba Hubbard, D’Onta Foreman
Notable cut: Spencer Brown
No surprises here. The team signed D’Onta Foreman this offseason to provide a downhill running style and power in short-yardage situations. McCaffrey won’t come off the field much. Chuba Hubbard will spell CMC when he does.
Receiver (7)
Safe: DJ Moore, Robbie Anderson, Terrace Marshall Jr., Andre Roberts, Rashard Higgins, Shi Smith, Laviska Shenault
Notable cuts: Keith Kirkwood, Derek Wright, C.J. Saunders, Brandon Zylstra
In my first 53-man roster projection, I had C.J. Saunders making the team over Brandon Zylstra. Saunders returned from a calf injury last week. He played 11 snaps against Buffalo, second-fewest only to D.J. Moore’s two. Is Saunders limited reps a sign he’s making the team or that he’s the odd man out? I’m leaning toward the latter.
Zylstra is battling a lingering hamstring injury. He has not practiced in a few weeks and did not play against the Bills. The team knows what it has in Zylstra: A reliable special-teamer who has been with the team since 2019. But, with the Tuesday afternoon acquisition of Laviska Shenault, Zylstra may be the odd man out.
Saunders and Zylstra should clear waivers and could be added to Carolina’s practice squad if they are cut. Keith Kirkwood and Derek Wright would make sense as practice squad additions as well.
Tight end (4)
Safe: Ian Thomas, Tommy Tremble, Colin Thompson, Stephen Sullivan
Notable cut: Giovanni Ricci
The Panthers have a collection of tight ends who are not separating from each another. Ricci has had the most target-heavy preseason, but he’s a converted fullback lining up at tight end. He was injured against Buffalo. Rhule said his injury is not serious, but did not specify whether Ricci would practice this week.
Ricci could make the team over Thompson or Sullivan, but both are more traditional tight ends.
Offensive line (9)
Safe: Taylor Moton, Ikem Ekwonu, Austin Corbett, Brady Christensen, Pat Elflein, Bradley Bozeman, Michael Jordan, Cade Mays, Cam Erving
Notable cut: Deonte Brown
The team received good news on Monday when Rhule said center Bradley Bozeman should practice this week, opening up the possibility he’d be ready for Week 1.
There likely will not be any surprises across the offensive line. Brown, a 2021 sixth-round pick, was a long shot to make the team after the team drafted Mays at No. 199. Brown underperformed during minicamp and has not impressed in training camp.
Dennis Daley was expendable because of the position flexibility Erving, Christensen and Jordan all provide, so the team traded him Monday to Tennessee.
Keep an eye on an Erving trade, too. According to source, he is drawing interest from teams in need of either a swing tackle or starting tackle. If Erving is traded then perhaps someone else stays.
Defensive line (9)
Safe: Brian Burns, Yetur Gross-Matos, Derrick Brown, Matt Ioannidis, Marquis Haynes, Amare’ Barno, Daviyon Nixon, Bravvion Roy, Phil Hoskins
Notable cuts: Darryl Johnson, Aaron Larkin
Darryl Johnson and Aaron Larkin each played about 20 snaps against Buffalo. Larkin is having an impressive camp. The Panthers are encouraged by the training camp performances of Roy, Nixon and Hoskins. Haynes looks explosive on the edge. The team is deeper than expected up front.
Larkinwould be a likely practice squad addition if he is cut.
Linebacker (5)
Safe: Shaq Thompson, Frankie Luvu, Damien Wilson, Brandon Smith, Cory Littleton
Notable cuts: Khalan Tolson, Julian Stanford
Cory Littleton and rookie Brandon Smith led all Panthers linebackers in snaps against Buffalo. Both are locks to make the team. Smith could quickly become a game-day contributor after an impressive preseason.
The Panthers may keep six linebackers, but the team is more talented at defensive back than linebacker, which is why I’m only keeping five. I’d be surprised if the team kept more than five linebackers.
Defensive back (10)
Safe: Donte Jackson, Jaycee Horn, Xavier Woods, Jeremy Chinn, C.J. Henderson, Keith Taylor, Myles Hartsfield, Kalon Barnes, Stantley Thomas-Oliver, Kenny Robinson,
Notable cut: Sean Chandler, Sam Franklin Jr., Juston Burris, Tae Hayes
Forecasting the Panthers’ defensive back room was the most difficult prediction. I chose the best 10 defensive backs.
Keep an eye on Tae Hayes. Only Jaycee Horn played more snaps than Hayes against Buffalo. The team has a surplus of cornerback talent and is thin at safety. If Juston Burris and Hayes are cut they would make sense as immediate practice squad additions.
Specialists (3)
Safe: Johnny Hekker, J.J. Jansen, a kicker yet to be named
Notable cut: None
Carolina invested in Gonzalez, Johnny Hekker and returner Andre Roberts in hopes of transforming its kicking and return game to a top-10 unit. That reality may be dashed after Gonzalez “significantly” injured his groin against Buffalo.
He is expected to miss an extended amount of time, possibly the entire season.
According to a source, the team spent the weekend working out kickers. The team will have a few more tryouts on Monday. Former Jets kicker Eddy Piñeiro is one of the kickers Carolina will work out. He kicked for special teams coordinator Chris Tabor in Chicago.
On Monday the team worked out Piñeiro along with Chase McLaughlin, Matthew Wright, Brian Johnson and Taylor Bertolet
This story was originally published August 29, 2022 at 8:47 AM.
