Carolina Panthers Earn High Grade That Should Be Higher For Offseason Work

The Carolina Panthers begin their series of OTA offseason workouts next Tuesday. Dave Canales’s club comes off a playoff appearance in 2025, having captured the NFC South with an 8-9 record. The team lost a 34-31 heartbreaker at home to the Los Angeles Rams in the wild card round. The franchise has enjoyed a steady climb since finishing an NFL-worst 2015 in 2023.

As usual, it’s been a very busy few months for president of football operations/general manager Dan Morgan. He’s taken the bull by the horns since being promoted in 2024, and this year has certainly been exception. Once again, he used both free agency and the draft in addressing both sides of the ball.

Panthers receive good but not great grade for their 2026 offseason

Monroe Freeling — Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports handed out his offseason grades for the 16 teams in the National Football Conference. He gave Canales’s club a B-plus, the highest grade in the NFC South ahead of Tampa Bay Buccaneers (B), New Orleans Saints (B), and Atlanta Falcons (B-minus).

“Carolina went hard in free agency to improve its defense," said Sullivan, "signing two of the top players on the market in EDGE Jaelan Phillips (4 years, $120 million) and LB Devin Lloyd (3 years, $45 million). That's a steep price for two defenders, but both should be immediate difference makers…The Panthers also continued to build around Bryce Young, putting an emphasis on keeping him upright...”

Rasheed Walker — Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

You will recall that veteran left tackle Ikem Ekwonu suffered a ruptured patellar tendon in the aforementioned playoff loss to the Rams, and his immediate and perhaps long-term future remains a question mark. In free agency, Morgan added former Packers’ left tackle Rasheed Walker via a one-year contract. He then used the team’s first-round pick on University of Georgia tackle Monroe Freeling.

Panthers’ GM Dan Morgan’s work this offseason may be underrated

Sam Hecht — Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Only the New York Giants (A), Los Angeles Rams (A), and Dallas Cowboys (A-minus) earned higher grades than the Panthers from Sullivan. Yet, the way Carolina has approached 2026 perhaps deserves much more praise.

The signing of Walker and the drafting of Freeling was just one example of how he is building the roster. From 2024-25, the team utilized three different starting centers (Austin Corbett, Brady Christensen, and Cade Mays) for various reasons. All three are no longer with the team. Not only did Morgan sign former Jaguars/turned Saints’ pivot Luke Fortner to a one-year deal this offseason, he used a fifth-round pick on highly-regarded Kansas State center Sam Hecht.

Similarly, Carolina has been looking to upgrade the back end of its defense. They brought back veteran Nick Scott via a one-year contract. However, the Panthers may have struck gold twice in the fifth round in April in grabbing Penn State safety Zakee Wheatley.

Grades are certainly subjective. However, if all the new faces gel this season, you may be able to look back and say this was an A-plus effort by Morgan, Canales, and the front office in 2026.

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