Panthers Effectively Rule Out Drafting Backup Quarterback With Will Grier Signing

The Carolina Panthers have spent a ton of time looking into backup quarterbacks this offseason. They traded Andy Dalton and signed Kenny Pickett to a one-year deal behind Bryce Young.

They also scouted some options beyond this season in the NFL draft, meeting with Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia, Texas Tech QB Behren Morton, and Georgia Tech signal-caller Haynes King. All of them are considered future backups and late-round picks, or even UDFAs.

Now, the Panthers have effectively ruled out selecting a quarterback in the upcoming NFL draft. They signed quarterback Will Grier, a player they drafted in 2019, to round out the quarterback room.

As the draft draws closer and teams fill out their rosters, Cowboys QB Will Grier is signing with Carolina, where he started his NFL career in 2019. Grier now will join a quarterback room that includes Bryce Young and Kenny Pickett. pic.twitter.com/Ukvx1oy4jn
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 21, 2026

Some teams don't even carry three quarterbacks, and so the Panthers have essentially filled out their depth chart here. It's not impossible to imagine them taking a quarterback, but with other holes on the roster, it certainly looks like they've punted the long-term backup issue to next year.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia (QB14) during the NFL Scouting Combine | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Pavia remains an interesting option, even in the wake of the Grier addition. He could go undrafted. If he is selected, it will be very late in the draft despite his status as a Heisman runner-up in 2025. Scouts don't like his game, and he can be a little abrasive.

So if he goes undrafted, the Panthers very well could take a flyer on him and let him compete for the QB3 spot with Grier. The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback isn't exactly a rock-solid veteran, so it's not as if a rookie would have no shot at taking that spot.

Drafting Will Grier was a huge mistake by Panthers

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Will Grier (15) throws during the second half against the Atlanta Falcons | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

In 2019, the Panthers still had Cam Newton, but they began to consider life after him. Then-GM Marty. Hurney decided to take a chance on West Virginia quarterback Will Grier in the third round. He was picked 100th, which isn't the most valuable draft slot, but it can produce impact players.

Grier was not an impact player. He's started two games in his career, only ever making it onto the active roster of the Panthers. He did not do well in those games, either. Grier has 53.8% completion, zero touchdowns, and four interceptions total.

A third-round pick is rarely ever truly wasted, but the Panthers wasted it here. They could've spent a pick on any of the following and it would've been so much better:

RB Alexander Mattison
DB CJ Gardner-Johnson
EDGE Maxx Crosby
CB Julian Love
RB Justice Hill
RB Tony Pollard
QB Jarrett Stidham
TE Foster Moreau
LB Dre Greenlaw
LB Andrew Van Ginkel
CB Mike Jackson
OT David Edwards
WR Darius Slayton
LB Cole Holcomb
QB Gardner Minshew
OT Justin Skule
WR Scotty Miller
S Donovan Wilson
S Nick Scott

That's some serious talent all the way into the seventh round, but the Panthers wasted the 100th pick on Grier. Gardner-Johnson and Crosby literally went five and six spots after Grier, making the mistake even worse.

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