(QB Bryce Young – AP Photo)
Key Players Returning:
QB Bryce Young, RB Chuba Hubbard, RB Miles Sanders, WR Jonathan Mingo, WR Adam Thielen, TE Tommy Tremble, OC Austin Corbett, OC Brady Christensen, OT Ikem Ekwonu, OT Taylor Moton, DE Derrick Brown, NT Nick Thurman, NT Shy Tuttle, LB Shaq Thompson, CB Jaycee Horn, NB Troy Hill, SS Sam Franklin Jr., SS Xavier Woods, KR Raheem Blackshear, PR Ihmir Smith-Marsette, PK Eddy Pineiro, and PT Johnny Hekker.
Key Players Departing:
WR DJ Chark Jr. (Chargers), OC Bradley Bozeman (Chargers), DE Yetur Gross-Matos (49ers), DT DeShawn Williams (Bills), LB Brian Burns (Giants), LB Jadeveon Clowney (Ravens), LB Frankie Luvu (Commanders), LB Kamu Grugier-Hill (Vikings), LB Deion Jones (Bills), CB CJ Henderson (Texans), CB Donte Johnson (Steelers), NB Jeremy Chinn (Commanders), and FS Von Bell (Bengals).
Key Players Added:
WR Diontae Johnson (Steelers), OG Robert Hunt (Dolphins), OG Damien Lewis (Seahawks), DE A’Shawn Robinson (Giants), LB Jadaveon Clowney (Ravens), LB Josey Jewell (Broncos), LB DJ Wonnum (Vikings), CB Dane Jackson (Bills), FS Jordan Fuller (Rams), and FS Nick Scott (Bengals).
(WR Xavier Legette – USA Today Sports)
Draft Picks:
Round 1: Pick 032 – WR Xavier Legette (South Carolina)
Round 2: Pick 046 – RB Jonathon Brooks (Texas)
Round 3: Pick 072 – LB Trevin Wallace (Kentucky)
Round 4: Pick 101 – TE Ja’Tavion Sanders (Texas)
Round 5: Pick 146 – CB Chau Smith-Wade (Washington State)
Round 6: Pick 200 – DT Jaden Crumedy (Mississippi State)
Round 7: Pick 240 – LB Michael Barrett (Michigan)
2023 Results:
W01 @ Falcons L 10-24
W02 SAINTS L 17-20
W03 @ Seahawks L 27-37
W04 VIKINGS L 13-21
W05 @ Lions L 24-42
W06 @ Dolphins L 21-42
Bye Week
W08 TEXANS W 15-13
W09 COLTS L 13-27
W10 @ Bears L 13-16
W11 COWBOYS L 10-33
W12 @ Titans L 10-17
W13 @ Buccaneers L 18-21
W14 @ Saints L 6-28
W15 FALCONS W 9-7
W16 PACKERS L 30-33
W17 @ Jaguars L 0-26
W18 BUCCANEERS L 0-9
Team Info:
2023 Overall: 2-15 (4th in NFC South)
Home: 2-6
Away: 0-9
South: 1-5
NFC: 1-11
AFC: 1-4
Head Coach: Dan Canales
Carolina: 0-0
Career: 0-0
Playoffs: 0-0
(WR Adam Thielen – USA Today Sports)
Returning Statistical Leaders:
Passing: Bryce Young (315-527, 2877 yards, 59.8%, 5.5 avg., 11 TD, 10 INT)
Rushing: Chuba Hubbard (238 car., 902 yards, 3.8 avg., 5 TD)
Receiving: Adam Thielen (103 rec., 1014 yards, 9.8 avg., 4 TD)
Yards After Catch: Adam Thielen (345)
TD’s Scored: Chris Hubbard (5)
Sacks: Derrick Brown (2)
Tackles: Derrick Brown (103)
Interceptions: Xavier Woods (2)
Pass Deflections: Xavier Woods (7)
Tackles For Loss: Derrick Brown (7)
Forced Fumbles: Troy Hill (1)
Kick Returns: Raheem Blackshear (16 ret., 430 yards, 26.9 avg., 0 TD)
Punt Returns: Ihmir Smith-Marsette (23 ret., 143 yards, 6.2 avg., 0 TD)
Kicking: Eddy Pineiro (25-29 fg/fga., 88%, 17-20 xp-xpa., 92 pts).
Punting: Johnny Hekker (82 punts, 3838 yards, 46.8 avg., 26 in20)
Projected Offensive Starters:
QB: 9 Bryce Young
RB: 30 Chubba Hubbard
WR: 5 Diontae Johnson
WR: 17 Xavier Legette |R|
WR: 19 Adam Thielen
TE: 82 Tommy Tremble
LT: 79 Ikem Ekwonu
LG: 68 Damien Lewis
OC: 63 Austin Corbett
RG: 50 Robert Hunt
RT: 72 Taylor Moton
KR: 3 Raheem Blackshear
PK: 4 Eddy Pineiro
Projected Defensive Starters:
DE: 95 Derrick Brown
NT: 99 Shy Tuttle
DE: 94 A’Shawn Robinson
LB: 7 Jadeveon Clowney
LB: 54 Shaq Thompson
LB: 47 Josey Jewell
LB: 98 DJ Wonnum
CB: 8 Jaycee Horn
CB: 23 Dane Jackson
FS: 20 Jordan Fuller
SS: 25 Xavier Woods
PR: 11 Ihmir Smith-Marsette
PT: 10 Johnny Hekker
(DE Derrick Brown – Getty Images)
Team Grades:
Offense
Quarterbacks: B
Running Backs: C
Wide Receivers: B
Offensive Line: C
Defense
Defensive Line: C
Linebackers: A
Secondary: B
Special Teams
Kick Returners: A
Punt Returners: A
Kickers: A
Punters: A
Schedule:
09/08 @ Saints | Carolina trails the series 28-31. The Panthers are 8-13 since 2014, and their last series road win (10-7) was in 2022.
09/15 CHARGERS | Carolina leads the series 6-1. The Panthers won (21-16) the last meeting between teams in 2020, and their only series loss (6-17) was in 2004.
09/22 @ Raiders | Carolina trails the series 3-4. The Panthers lost (30-34) the last meeting between teams in 2020, and their last series win (17-6) was in 2012.
09/29 BENGALS | The series is tied 3-3-1. The Panthers lost (21-42) the last meeting between teams in 2022.
10/06 @ Bears | Carolina trails the series 4-8. The Panthers are 1-3 since 2014, and their last series win (31-24) was in 2014.
10/13 FALCONS | Carolina trails the series 22-36. The Panthers are 7-13 since 2014, and their last series home loss (21-29) was in 2021.
10/20 @ Commanders | Carolina trails the series 7-10. The Panthers are 3-3 since restarting the series in 2015, and they lost (21-27) the last meeting between teams in 2021.
10/27 @ Broncos | Carolina trails the series 2-6. The Panthers are 1-3 since restarting the series in 2015, and they won (23-10) the last meeting between teams in 2022.
11/03 SAINTS | The Panthers last series home win (22-14) was in 2022.
11/10 GIANTS | Carolina leads the series 7-6. The Panthers are 2-2 since restarting the series in 2015, and they lost (16-19) the last meeting between teams in 2022.
11/24 CHIEFS | Carolina trails the series 2-5. The Panthers lost (31-33) the last meeting between teams in 2020, and their last series win (34-0) was in 2008.
12/01 BUCCANEERS | Carolina leads the series 25-22. The Panthers are 9-11 since 2014, and their last series home win (21-3) was in 2022.
12/08 @ Eagles | Carolina trails the series 5-8. The Panthers are 2-3 since 2014, and they lost (18-21) the last meeting between teams in 2021.
12/15 COWBOYS | Carolina trails the series 5-11. The Panthers are 2-2 since restarting the series in 2015, and their last series win (16-8) was in 2018.
12/22 CARDINALS | Carolina leads the series 14-6. The Panthers are 6-1 since 2014, and they lost (16-26) the last meeting between teams in 2022.
12/29 @ Buccaneers | The Panthers last series road win (37-26) was in 2019.
01/05 @ Falcons | The Panthers last series road win (19-13) was in 2021.
Predictions:
Home: 7-2
Road: 4-4
DIV: 4-2
NFC: 8-4
AFC: 3-2
Overall: 11-6 (1st in AFC South/4th Seed – Eliminated in Wild Card Round)
Series Histories: Histories are from the inception of the first Super Bowl season through present day. Meetings prior to 1966 are not included. Playoff wins are included in the year the season took place. For example, if a team won a wildcard game in January of 2024, the game will be listed under the 2023 season.
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