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Panthers’ Unprecedented Additions Show Dan Morgan’s Growth as Carolina GM

Dave Canales’s team heads into the 2026 regular season with some new faces, including a few players that the Panthers managed to snare in the past two weeks.
Russell Baxter|
Jun 9, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Team manager Dan Morgan during the first day of mini camp at Bank of America Stadium practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
Jun 9, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Team manager Dan Morgan during the first day of mini camp at Bank of America Stadium practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Carolina Panthers

The reigning NFC South champions are done with trimming their roster down to 53 players, at least for now. However, there’s still work to be done in terms of setting up a practice squad.

The Carolina Panthers promoted assistant general manager Dan Morgan to president of football operations/general manager in January of 2024. In three offseasons, he has wasted little time when it comes to investing in the free-agent market. That year, he inked guards Damien Lewis (Seattle Seahawks) and Robert Hunt (Miami Dolphins).

In 2025, there were the early additions of defensive tackles Tershawn Wharton (Kansas City Chiefs) and Bobby Brown III (Los Angeles Rams), edge rusher Patrick Jones II (Minnesota Vikings), and safety Tre’von Moehrig (Las Vegas Raiders)—all to aid the worst defense in the league the previous season.

Once again, Panthers’ GM Dan Morgan got an early start in free agency

Jaelan Phillips
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This offseason, Morgan inked pass rusher Jaelan Phillips (Philadelphia Eagles) and Pro Bowl linebacker Devin Lloyd (Jacksonville Jaguars) to lucrative deals, and left tackle Rasheed Walker (Green Bay Packers) and center Luke Fortner (New Orleans Saints) to one-year contracts. The Panthers added seven players in April’s draft and a slew more undrafted prospects.

The point is that Morgan and head coach Dave Canales, for the most part, have gone into training camp and the preseason with a set hand. Yes, in late August of 2024, Carolina swung a deal with the Seahawks for cornerback Mike Jackson—which has proven to be a major steal. And last month, the team did bring back versatile blocker Brady Christensen, who had spent the previous five seasons with the franchise.

Panthers have been very busy this month acquiring proven veterans

This month, Morgan broke form in the form of signing nine-year pro Darren Waller, who played nine games with the Dolphins this past season, to bolster the tight end room. The club also recently agreed to terms with linebacker Bobby Okereke. The latter was cut loose this offseason after three seasons with the Giants.

The Panthers also swung a deal with the Los Angeles Chargers this past weekend and gave up a 2028 sixth-round draft choice for a defensive tackle prospect.

When it came to Sunday’s cutdowns, Carolina parted ways with tight end James Mitchell, as well as two-year linebacker Trevin Wallace. The latter was embroiled in a battle with Claudin Cherelus for the starting job opposite Lloyd, but nothing was settled after four preseason games in which both players received almost the identical number of defensive stops.

On paper, this certainly looks like an improved roster—especially on the defensive side of the ball. The proof comes on Sunday, September 13 when the Canales’s club hosts the reigning NFC North champion Chicago Bears.

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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.

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