One Surprise Carolina Panthers Cut to Expect After OTAs

The Panthers have a ton of wide receivers to parse through. They can't all make the final 53.

New York Jets wide receiver John Metchie III (3) makes the catch and touchdown | David Butler II-Imagn Images

OTAs are here, which means it's time for the Carolina Panthers to start really determining who will and won't make the final 53. Right now, the roster is overstuffed, and it's time to begin parsing through all the players they've acquired. Some of them, even some surprising names, won't make it.

Thus is the nature of the NFL. It's hard to make a roster, even though there are 53 spots available, which is more than the other major sports. There are just a lot of positions to fill with those 53 spots, and some deserving names end up left out.

John Metchie could be a surprising cut by the Panthers after OTAs

New York Jets wide reciever John Metchie III (3) scores a touchdown as Baltimore Ravens safety Alohi Gilman (12) defends | Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images

The Panthers have a lot of wide receivers on the roster right now. Throughout OTAs, training camp, and the preseason, they'll have to whittle that number down, letting players go as stages of the offseason continue to pass.

This is more or less the same exact problem the Panthers had last year. They had a plethora of wide receivers, especially after drafting both Tetairoa McMillan and Jimmy Horn Jr. Add in camp darling Hunter Renfrow, and it was a difficult decision.

The Panthers ultimately had to cut Renfrow before trading Adam Thielen and re-signing him. This year, a trade like that isn't likely, so someone's going to be left on the outside looking in. It won't be McMillan, Jalen Coker, or Xavier Legette.

Chris Brazzell is probably pretty safe, too. David Moore is a lock given the coaching staff's weird adoration of him. Horn is probably safe as well, and that makes six receivers. That could ultimately be all the Panthers keep, but they could carry another.

If they do, that means that Brycen Tremayne, John Metchie, Malick Meiga, Dan Chisena, Kobe Prentice, Ainias Smith, and Ja'Seem Reed are all competing for that final hypothetical spot.

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Brycen Tremayne (87) warms up before the game | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

And if it comes down to those players, then the Panthers are not likely to pick Metchie. Meiga is super athletic and could be a dark horse. Chisena and Treymayne have special teams experience, and Tremayne made the team last year. Prentice is another interesting UDFA.

Metchie has the NFL experience the others do not, but he also does not have the upside the others do. He doesn't play special teams, either. He's a reclamation project like Renfrow, and if Renfrow didn't make the roster last year, the odds aren't in Metchie's favor this year.

He is Bryce Young's college teammate and there could be some chemistry, but after all this time in the NFL, Metchie hasn't panned out. What are the chances he puts it together this offseason? Pretty slim.