HEADLINES

Amare Barno

Panthers Seeking Edge Rush Addition

September 1st, 2024 at 4:45pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Panthers’ initial roster is essentially set in advance of Week 1, but depth moves could still be forthcoming. An addition along the edge in particular would not come as a surprise.

[RELATED: Panthers Add Lonnie Johnson, Claim Three CBs]

In advance of the roster cutdown deadline, Carolina placed D.J. Wonnum and Amare Barno on the reserve/PUP list. That move guaranteed both pass rushers will miss at least the first four weeks of the season, leaving the team thin on the edge. Wonnum was added in free agency and is a veteran of 31 starts dating back to his Vikings tenure. Barno has logged signficant special teams snaps during his two years in the league, but he handled a rotational defensive role last season.

With both Wonnum and Barno on the mend, the Panthers’ depth chart currently consists of Jadeveon Clowney, DJ Johnson, Eku Leota and K’Lavon Chaisson at the outside linebacker spot. Head coach Dave Canales said, via Joe Person of The Athletic, that Barno will likely be sidelined longer than the one-month minimum (subscription required). As a result, Carolina – a team which also has Tarron Jackson on the practice squad – is a prime candidate to make at least a depth addition capable of chipping in at the start of the season.

Indeed, general manager Dan Morgan confirmed (via Person) a move at the outside linebacker position is being looked into. Clowney joined the team on a two-year free agent deal, one which could provide him with a degree of stability in his career. The former No. 1 pick had a strong one-and-done campaign with the Ravens last season, matching his career best with 9.5 sacks. Since Brian Burns is no longer in the fold, production off the edge will be a key storyline for Carolina in 2024 with Clowney leading the way.

The Panthers (who, Morgan noted, do not have a firm timeline in place on Wonnum’s recovery timeline) currently sit at the bottom of the league in terms of cap space. Moves aimed at adding flexibility will be needed in the coming days to achieve cap compliance. A restructure or two should therefore be expected, but acquisition of an edge rusher should be as well. The likes of Yannick Ngakoue, Romeo Okwara and Shaq Lawson are on the open market.

Jonathon Brooks Lands On Panthers’ Reserve/NFI List; D.J. Wonnum Also Off 53-Man Roster

August 27th, 2024 at 8:22am CST by Sam Robinson

Looming as a player the Panthers were not planning on having to open the year, Jonathon Brooks will indeed remain out of the picture for the rebuilding team in September. He is shifting to the reserve/NFI list, per ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter.

Brooks went down with an ACL tear in November. Seeing as the Panthers have the second-round pick signed through 2027, they were long expected to play it safe with this draft’s first running back chosen. This leaves Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders as the Panthers’ lead backs to open the season, but Brooks is expected to be heard from later in the year.

Additionally, Carolina is sliding free agency addition D.J. Wonnum — who suffered a torn quad on the same day ex-Vikings teammate T.J. Hockenson went down — to the reserve/PUP list, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. Both designations will sideline these Panthers for at least four games. Hockenson is also out for at least four games, with Minnesota transferring him to the reserve/PUP list Tuesday morning.

The Panthers traded up for Brooks in Round 2, choosing him 20 spots before any other running back went off the board. With Hubbard in a contract year and Sanders part of a disappointing Carolina 2023 free agency contingent, Brooks profiles as the clear-cut long-term option in Carolina. For now, however, the former Bijan Robinson Texas backup will continue his rehab effort.

Wonnum joined the Panthers on a two-year, $12.5MM deal but received only $1.25MM guaranteed. He will need to move onto the Panthers’ active roster to collect part of his 2024 compensation, with $2.13MM of that sum coming via per-game roster bonuses. A former Danielle Hunter sidekick in Minnesota, Wonnum still enjoyed a decent market despite the quad setback. Wonnum has two eight-sack seasons (2021, ’23) on his resume, capitalizing on Hunter’s 2021 pec tear and 2023 starter Marcus Davenport‘s recent ankle injury to produce as a quality fill-in option.

Carolina is also moving third-year pass rusher Amare Barno to the reserve/PUP list, per The Athletic’s Joe Person. The team will enter the season shorthanded on the edge, placing more pressure on the injury-prone (but frequently productive) Jadeveon Clowney to justify the two-year, $20MM deal he signed. The Panthers also added former Jaguars first-rounder K’Lavon Chaisson, but the 2020 draftee has not come especially close to justifying that investment.

It would not surprise to see GM Dan Morgan active on the waiver wire — particularly at edge rusher — as the Panthers’ 2-15 2023 showing gives them the No. 1 waiver priority. Waiver claims process at 11am CT on Wednesday.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/19/24

July 19th, 2024 at 6:47pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are Friday’s minor transactions:

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Green Bay Packers

New England Patriots

  • Placed on active/NFI list: LB Jontrey Hunter
  • Placed on active/PUP list: RB Terrell Jennings

Seattle Seahawks

Brooks’ appearance on this list doesn’t come as much of a shock. After suffering a torn ACL as a Longhorn last November, he is not going to be cleared for the start of camp, though he can be activated at any time. His injury is considered a “non-football injury” because it occurred before his NFL career began, otherwise he would’ve been on the PUP. Wonnum’s presence on the PUP was also not a surprise as he deals with complications from his offseason quadriceps surgery.

Everett’s appearance, on the other hand, is a bit of a surprise. To date, no injuries have been reported this offseason on the veteran tight end, leaving a bit of a mystery as to the cause of his unavailability.

Williams, who was placed on the NFI list yesterday, lasted one day before passing his physical and getting activated off the injured list. As can tend to be the case, some situations this early can be more precautionary than a tell of something more serious.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/27/23

December 27th, 2023 at 8:03pm CST by Ely Allen

Wednesday’s minor NFL transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Las Vegas Raiders

Minnesota Vikings

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Panthers Place OLB Justin Houston On IR

November 4th, 2023 at 5:47pm CST by Ely Allen

Carolina is down yet another defensive player this season after announcing the decision to place veteran pass rusher Justin Houston on injured reserve. The loss of another defensive starter just piles on to what is certainly already feeling like a bit of a lost season.

The Panthers got off to an extremely slow start this year, winning only their first game of the season last week. Rookie No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young has piloted a struggling offense that ranks 30th in the league in yardage gained. The offensive struggles also led to head coach Frank Reich ceding play calling duties to rookie offensive coordinator Thomas Brown. Combine all the offensive struggles with a litany of defensive injuries and you arrive where the Panthers are now.

The 34-year-old Houston was brought in to start opposite star pass rusher Brian Burns. So far this year, though, through seven starts, Houston has only managed half a sack, two tackles for loss, and three quarterback hits. He’s far removed from his days of leading the NFL in sacks with 22.0, but even last year in Baltimore, Houston led the team in sacks while flirting with double digits.

Houston joins defensive teammates defensive end Henry Anderson, outside linebackers Yetur Gross-Matos and Marquis Haynes, linebackers Shaq Thompson and Claudin Cherelus, cornerback Jaycee Horn, and safety Jeremy Chinn on IR. That’s not even including the offensive side of the ball, which is currently without left guard Brady Christensen and tight ends Ian Thomas and Giovanni Ricci.

So far, the Panthers have only activated one player (tight end Stephen Sullivan) from IR, so the team still has the ability to activate seven more players from the injured list. Out of the players listed above, Anderson, who was placed on IR before the season started, is the only one who is unable to be activated, but the severity and nature of Thompson and Christensen’s injuries likely suggest that neither will be able to return either.

With Houston out, second-year defender Amare Barno or rookie third-round pick D.J. Johnson will likely be asked to step up into a bigger role. To supplement the position a bit, the Panthers did elect to bring up practice squad outside linebacker Eku Leota as a standard gameday elevation tomorrow.

Additionally, in order to fill Houston’s vacancy on the roster, Carolina signed practice squad safety Matthias Farley to the 53-man roster. Farley, an eight-year veteran, was once a full-season starter in Indianapolis before bouncing around with the Jets, Titans, and Raiders in backup and special teams roles. He’s already started one game this year in which Chinn and Vonn Bell were unable to play, and Bell is listed as doubtful for tomorrow’s matchup against the Colts.