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Carolina Panthers backup makes Pro Football Focus list of NFL’s top 32 centers

After a problem-plagued 2023, the Panthers' offensive line made major strides in 2024. There's an emerging player who could become the team's fulltime pivot.
Russell Baxter|
Nov 10, 2024; Munich, Germany; Helmets at the line of scrimmage as Carolina Panthers guard Cade Mays (64) snaps the ball against the New York Giants in the first half during the 2024 NFL Munich Game at Allianz Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Nov 10, 2024; Munich, Germany; Helmets at the line of scrimmage as Carolina Panthers guard Cade Mays (64) snaps the ball against the New York Giants in the first half during the 2024 NFL Munich Game at Allianz Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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Recently, Mason Cameron of Pro Football Focus came up with his ranking of the league’s top 32 centers entering the upcoming season. At No. 22 was Panthers' pivot Cade Mays—a three-year performer who was the club’s starting center in eight of Carolina’s final nine outings.

“The Panthers’ starting center job is up in the air heading into 2025,” explained Cameron. “Austin Corbett returns to the roster, but having played fewer than 300 snaps in each of the past two seasons due to injury, he will have to compete for the role.

Corbett was the starter for the first five games in 2024, and in Week 5 went down with a biceps injury that shelved him for the remainder of the season. Versatile Brady Christensen took over for the next three games before giving way to Mays for the next six contests. Christensen started in Week 16 before Mays returned for the final two contests.

Cade May
Nov 24, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) gets the snap as guard Cade Mays (64) blocks in the third quarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The latter finished 2024 as Pro Football Focus’ 13th-ranked pivot. His forte was pass-protection, as only three players earned a higher grade in this department than the sixth-round pick in 2022 from the University of Tennessee.

“Mays stepped up as the Panthers’ starting center…” said Cameron, “and went on to produce the sixth-highest PFF overall grade at the position from that point through the end of the regular season.”

In 2023, PFF ranked the Panthers’ offensive front at No. 29. This past season, only seven clubs finished higher on the list. There are tackles Ikem Ekwonu and Taylor Moton, and guards Damien Lewis and Robert Hunt. So, will it be Corbett or Mays snapping to quarterback Bryce Young in Week 1 when Dave Canales’s team travels to Jacksonville?

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Russell Baxter
RUSSELL BAXTER

Russell S. Baxter has been writing and researching the game of football for more than 40 years, and on numerous platforms. That includes television, as he spent more than two decades at ESPN, and was part of shows that garnered five Emmy Awards. He also spent the 2015 NFL season with Thursday Night Football on CBS/NFLN.