The Five Most Disappointing Players From the Panthers in 2023

There wasn't a whole lot of good football put on display in Carolina this past season, but there were a handful of players who severely underwhelmed in one way or another.

Today, we look at the five most disappointing players from the Carolina Panthers and as you would guess, four of them are on the offensive side of the ball. And no, we're not including Bryce Young - the kid never stood a chance.

RB Miles Sanders

Sanders signed the richest deal of any free agent running back last offseason, but had arguably the worst production. He lost out on the starting job by week six to Chuba Hubbard and never regained it. Hubbard is the starter moving forward according to GM Dan Morgan and that's a painful thing for Panthers fans to hear just one year into a four-year deal. Cutting Sanders this offseason would be a little pricey, but if they wait another year to move on, it would only cost them $2.5M in dead cap.

TE Hayden Hurst

Hurst had arguably the worst season of his six-year career. The veteran tight end logged one touchdown on the year and it came in Week 1. Remember when he launched Bryce Young's first TD pass into the stands? Maybe that was a sign for what was to come in a miserable 2-15 campaign. Hurst did bout with a concussion toward the end of the season but he wasn't very productive before that.

LT Ikem Ekwonu

Ekwonu had a typical up-and-down rookie season in 2022. 2023, however, was a different story. The former top ten pick never showed any signs of comfort, nor was he able to string together a series of games where he looked like a franchise tackle. Ekwonu deserves some of the blame, but I put a lot on the previous coaching staff and the lack of consistency in their messaging. Maybe he's a better fit at guard, but for now he'll remain at left tackle.

C Bradley Bozeman

In a power run scheme, Bozeman dominated and set the tone. In Frank Reich's zone read scheme, he struggled. He had moments in the run game, but he really took a step back in pass protection. Again, I see this more as an indictment on the previous staff. With a group of aligned coaches, I expect Bozeman to return to his 2022 form next fall.

S Jeremy Chinn

What happened to Jeremy Chinn? You know, the former Rookie of the Year finalist? No one really knows. Ejiro Evero praised his versatility all offseason only to play him in 39% of the team's defensive snaps. Chinn is an unrestricted free agent and if I had to bet on it, he'll be playing elsewhere in 2024.

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