After a 1-3 start, the Panthers have won four of their five games despite a series of injuries to their top two quarterbacks and several offensive linemen.
Starting QB Bryce Young missed Week 8 with a high ankle sprain. In that game, backup Andy Dalton broke the thumb on his throwing hand. Young returned for Carolina’s next game.
Their offensive line has dealt with even more injuries. Week 1 starters Robert Hunt and Austin Corbett, along with versatile depth Chandler Zavala and Brady Christensen, have spent time on injured reserve; Hunt and Christensen are still there. The Panthers’ other three Week 1 starters – Ikem Ekwonu, Damien Lewis, and Taylor Moton – have all missed at least one game, and backup center Cade Mays was sidelined by knee and ankle injuries in Week 9. Nine different offensive linemen have taken at least 100 snaps this year.
That has caused a number of shuffles along Carolina’s offensive line, including a few switches between left guard and center by Corbett. With Mays back in the lineup, Corbett will now move to right guard, per The Athletic’s Joe Person, which he has not played in the last two seasons. However, he spent the previous four years starting at the position, so it should be a relatively easy change.
Hunt, meanwhile, is “right on track” in his recovery from his biceps tear, according to Panthers head coach Dave Canales (via Person). The team is still holding out hope that he could return for the last four games of the season, but they are planning to re-evaluate the veteran guard’s status this week.