We’re counting down the days until the Panthers open up the 2025 season!
In this series, we’ll be counting down until opening kickoff by running through the Panthers roster by jersey number. Today’s piece looks at the current and historical players to have ever donned No. 81 for the Carolina Panthers.
Current Player: TJ Luther
Luther (5’11”, 190 lbs) started his collegiate career at Wofford in 2018. Had Richardson still owned the team, we would have made plenty of jokes about why Luther was in camp with the Panthers, probably to the effect of him being Brenton Bersin’s half brother or something. After opting out of the second half of the COVID season, Luther transferred to Gardner-Webb where he spent two more seasons. He really broke out in the 2022 season, eclipsing 1,000 receiving yards on 55 catches including five touchdowns. He also provided some spark on kick returns throughout his career.
Luther signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent following the 2023 NFL Draft. He was released later that summer and has bounced around practice squads ever since, including stints with the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Green Bay Packers. He joined the Panthers practice squad in December of last year and inked a reserves/futures contract in January. Likely just a camp body, Luther will hope to use his big play ability to turn some heads and get another contract in the league.
Notable Previous Players to wear number 81: Jordan Matthews, Hayden Hurst, Kealoha Pilares, Ricky Proehl, Rocket Ismail
The most recent player to wear 81 for the Panthers was Jordan Matthews, who provided a veteran presence in the very young tight end room last season. Hayden Hurst wore the number before him. Hurst was a splash free agent signing for the Panthers but never panned out. In fairness, no one did in the Frank Reich offense. Kealoha Pilares was a young player that many Panthers fans were excited about, especially after he returned a kickoff for a touchdown in 2011. Unfortunately, that was the highlight of his Panthers career. Ricky Proehl was a major piece of the 2003 Super Bowl team, providing Jake Delhomme with that clutch slot receiver the team needed several times that season. Raghib “Rocket” Ismail spent a few seasons in Carolina, really breaking out in 1998. That year, he tallied 69 catches for 1,024 yards and eight touchdowns. The Panthers were unable to keep him the following season as the Dallas Cowboys outbid everyone for Ismail’s services.