With last season’s defensive performance, of course all eyes are on that side of the ball. However, when Carolina Panthers general manager Dan Morgan spoke with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine earlier in the week, he made it clear that they would not shy away from adding another weapon at wide receiver.
“You know, I love our wide receiver room. You know, I think with, with Thielen, with Coker, with Xavier, we have some guys in that room that we’re really excited about. We have a young core of guys that are, that are still developing, you know, from a, from a fundamental standpoint, from route running standpoint. And then Thielen obviously, you know, he’s, he’s old reliable in terms of, he’s savvy, he knows where to be. The quarterbacks can depend on him.”
That does not mean that Morgan and head coach Dave Canales will pass up an opportunity to shore up the position group if the opportunity presents itself. “I think that, you know, we have to definitely, it’d be nice to just find as many play makers as possible. So, you know, if we pinpoint a guy, whether in free agency or in the draft, then we wouldn’t hesitate to either draft or sign.”
Carolina did not initially have a first-round pick in the 2024 draft after the trade with the Chicago Bears to go to No. 1 in the 2023 draft. They traded up from No. 33 to No. 32 to draft receiver Xavier Legette out of South Carolina. The rookie finished the season with 497 yards and four touchdowns on 49 receptions. Jalen Coker, an undrafted rookie out of Holy Cross, finished the season with 478 yards and two touchdowns on 32 receptions. Both rookies missed games due to injuries. Adam Thielen, the veteran of the group, followed up a 1,014 yard 2023 campaign with 615 yards and five touchdowns on 48 receptions after missing significant time with a hamstring injury.
This is not a particularly deep receiver class so look for the Panthers to go the free agency route when trying to add weapons for Bryce Young in his third year.
