The Panthers operated for several games last year without starting defensive tackle Tershawn Wharton as he dealt with injury. According to Joe Person of The Athletic, Carolina will be without him for a bit more time as Wharton is reportedly “out indefinitely following neck surgery this month.”
Wharton came into the league as an undrafted free agent out of Missouri S&T, signing with the Chiefs out of college. He spent the first five years of his career in Kansas City, playing a significant role in the defensive rotation from Day 1. Where Derrick Nnadi served as a strong run defender next to star defensive lineman Chris Jones, Wharton stepped up as a more balanced option off the bench. The only changeups Wharton saw during his time with the Chiefs were when he tore his ACL in 2022 and missed all but five games and when he was asked to play a bigger role in 2024.
In that 2024 season, Wharton started 10 games for the Chiefs. With the additional play time, Wharton matched a career high with 29 total tackles and saw career highs in sacks (6.5), tackles for loss (7), and batted passes (2). The breakout campaign led Wharton to Carolina, where he signed a three-year, $54MM contract. Handed a full-time starting role for the first time in his career, Wharton’s absences were interspersed throughout the year. He played two games over the first six weeks of the season and missed the team’s final four games before returning for the playoffs.
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What does out indefinitely mean like the whole year a couple of games?