Heavy Investments on Defensive Line Aren’t Enough for Panthers

Dave Canales’s team is 10 days away from its Week 1 clash with the Chicago Bears, and the reigning NFC South champions have been putting some finishing touches on their roster this week. They secured the linebacking duo by pairing newcomer Devin Lloyd with the addition of veteran Bobby Okereke, and also added proven performer Tyrel Dodson to the practice squad.

Of course, there are the men up front that hope to make life easier for this contingent. On that note, Gordon McGuinness of Pro Football Focus came out with the service’s rankings when it came to league’s 32 teams and their defensive lines (interior defender and edge defenders). The Los Angeles Rams top the list, while the Carolina Panthers can be found near the middle at 15th.

Panthers added a proven edge rusher in free agency this offseason

“The Panthers made a significant investment in edge defender Jaelan Phillips,” explained McGuinness, “hoping he can complement Derrick Brown’s dominance on the interior. Injuries have limited Phillips throughout his career, but he played 819 snaps in 2025, his highest total since 2022.”

The former first-round pick of the Miami Dolphins played the first nine games of 2025 with the team before being dealt to the Philadelphia Eagles during the season. He also made nine appearance for the eventual NFC East champions, including a playoff clash with the San Francisco 49ers. It added up to 53 tackles, five sacks, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, and four passes defensed.

Former Pro Bowler Derrick Brown remains Carolina's top defensive lineman

Bobby Brown III — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Speaking of five sacks, that’s what Brown finished with this past season for Canales’s club—tying for the team lead. The six-year pro bounced back after missing all but one game in 2024. He finished fourth on the club with 73 stops, a team-best 11 quarterback hits and one forced fumbles, while knocking down seven passes.

“Brown remains the centerpiece of the defensive front. He was at his best in 2023, when he earned a career-high 90.1 PFF grade, but remained productive last season with 35 pressures across 450 pass-rushing snaps.”

What’s fascinating to note is that PFF’s evaluation mentioned no other interior defender. In 2025, general manager Dan Morgan inked two-time Super Bowl champion Tershawn Wharton (Chiefs) to a three-year, $45.05 million deal. He also added Bobby Brown III (Rams) via a three-year, $21 million deal in free agency.

Panthers need much more from their defensive front

Lee Hunter — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The former was limited to nine games and one playoff contest this past season, while Brown played in all 17 games and the wild card clash with the Los Angeles Rams, but made only five starts. Neither really made a difference during their first year in Carolina, and Wharton (neck) will begin 2026 on the reserve/physically-unable-to-perform list—meaning he will miss the first four games of the regular season.

The current depth chart for the Panthers has Derrick Brown, Bobby Brown III and 2025 fifth-round pick Cam Jackson (10 total games, zero starts in ’25) starting up front, with 2026 second-round pick Lee Hunter poised to be a factor. There’s also unproven Aaron Hall and TeRah Edwards, the latter acquired in a recent trade with the Los Angeles Chargers.

If one or two of these players can step up and make life easier for Derrick Brown, this could be a far more formidable defensive front.

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