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Dave Canales reveals Panthers WR Jalen Coker's status vs. Cowboys

One of the Carolina Panthers’ top offseason finds in 2024 hasn’t played this season. A healthy Jalen Coker would be a huge help to quarterback Bryce Young.
Russell Baxter|
Aug 8, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker (18) during the first quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
Aug 8, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker (18) during the first quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

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Carolina Panthers

He was an undrafted free agent during the 2024 offseason by the Carolina Panthers who wound up finishing third on the team in receiving yards as a rookie. Former Holy Cross product Jalen Coker played in 11 games for Dave Canales’s team a year ago—making four starts. He was targeted a total of 46 times and finished with 32 receptions for 478 yards (14.9 average) and a pair of touchdowns. Coker finished the season with an impressive 69.6 catch percentage.

With the offseason additions of rookies Tetairoa McMillan and Jimmy Horn Jr. and the free-agent signing of Hunter Renfrow, Coker was part of a new-look Panthers’ wide receiver room that also included 2024 first-round pick Xavier Legette, David Moore, and veteran Adam Thielen. And then things changed for Coker, who suffered an injury that has sidelined him ever since.

“The quadriceps strain that landed him on IR,” explained Darin Gantt of Panthers.com, “came the day after the trade that sent wide receiver Adam Thielen back to Minnesota, and Coker's progress through camp was part of the reason they felt good about making that move.”

Now as the Panthers prepare to square off against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, Coker could take the field for the first time this season.

Last week, Horn made his NFL debut and Legette—who caught a touchdown pass from Bryce Young in the club’s win over the Dolphins—returned after missing the previous two games. Officially listed as questionable, Coker’s return would be a huge boost to a passing attack that has produced just eight scores in five games—three via the wide receiver position.

They say timing is everything. And this week, Young and his pass-catching corps face the league’s worst defense in terms of passing yards per game allowed. Dallas has already allowed 12 touchdown passes this season—all of those coming in the club’s last four contests.

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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.