Carolina Panthers address ailing wide receiver room with familiar face

Welcome back to the building, Dan Chisena.

Dec 22, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Dan Chisena (88) makes a catch against the Arizona Cardinals during the second half at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The Carolina Panthers have suffered a lot of injuries to the wide receiver room. It's overall a very different unit than expected at the beginning of training camp, and two major injuries have thrown the unit into a bit of turmoil.

Jimmy Horn Jr. remains a project, Adam Thielen is gone, Jalen Coker is on IR, and Xavier Legette has been bad and is dealing with a hamstring issue. That prompted the Panthers to explore external options, and they landed on bringing a familiar face back to the practice squad in case he's needed for the active roster.

Dan Chisena returns as Panthers seek WR help

Jul 27, 2023; Latrobe, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver wide receiver Dan Chisena (85) participates in drills during training camp at Saint Vincent College. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

According to Charlotte Observer reporter Mike Kaye, the Panthers have re-signed Dan Chisena to the practice squad. They also moved on from Tommy Akingbesote, a DT, to make room for the wide receiver.

The #Panthers have re-signed WR Dan Chisena to the p-squad.

DT Tommy Akingbesote was cut from the p-squad to make room.

— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) September 23, 2025

Chisena spent very little time with the NFL team last year, but he was in the building until he was released in July after a calf injury prevented him from getting on the field. Last season, he caught his first three NFL passes.

Despite that happening just last year, this is Chisena's sixth season in the league. He's mostly been a special teams player during his career with the Minnesota Vikings, Pittsburgh Steelers, Arizona Cardinals, and Baltimore Ravens.

It's unclear what this means, but it probably isn't good. Chisena had some snaps on the NFL team last year, so they're clearly comfortable with him in game action if the need arises. This could indicate that Jalen Coker's injury might take more than four weeks to return from, or that Xavier Legette's injury might continue to bother him.

Either way, the receiver room is not in as good of shape as it was expected to be. On Sunday, David Moore ended up being WR3 behind Tetairoa McMillan and Hunter Renfrow, which would've been a genuine shock at the beginning of training camp.

But injuries sometimes force teams to get creative, and that might mean some action for Dan Chisena. They could also use him on special teams, where he excels, to push Brycen Tremayne into the offense more with the hurt receivers on the sideline.

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