The Carolina Panthers have trimmed their roster to 53 players, and there are a few surprises both on and off the roster.
The Carolina Panthers cut their roster down to 53 players on Tuesday in accordance with NFL rules. As in most seasons, we had a good idea of probably 45 or so of the guys that were going to make the team. It’s those last spots that are always up in the air. There are usually a couple of surprises on roster cut day, and this one was no different.
Terrace Marshall Jr. out, Jalen Coker in
The Panthers used a second round pick on TMJ just three seasons ago, and he’s never quite found his footing. He had flashes of promise, but those always seemed to be followed by disappearing acts and letdowns. He most notably played zero snaps in a game last season one week after leading the team in catches because the coaching staff essentially forgot about him. Regardless of where the blame lies, Marshall is out.
In his place is undrafted rookie Jalen Coker, who got the Steve Smith Sr. stamp of endorsement all offseason. Coker had a strong final game of the preseason and clearly did enough to earn the coaching staff’s trust. He also played special teams snaps, which is always a possible tiebreaker when deciding on depth players at certain position groups.
There aren’t many special teams aces
Most final roster cuts have a couple of guys that are tagged as the special teams guys. They’re usually linebackers, tight ends, and sometimes defensive backs. Ihmir Smith-Marsette and Raheem Blackshear are the team’s go-to returners, but there aren’t really any other players that stick out as being on the roster primarily for their special teams prowess. That’s probably not a big deal, and it’s not hard to argue that you want your players to be good at their primary positions while coaching them up on their special teams roles. Still, it’s a notable departure from what the team has done historically.
Winners decided in the defensive back positional battle
We talked about positional battles heading into the Bills game last week. One of the more tightly contested ones was the fight for the depth spots in the Panthers secondary. A lot of players had decent cases to make the roster. The Panthers elected for D’Shawn Jamison and Chau Smith-Wade over Dicaprio Bootle. Jammie Robinson is listed as a safety and made the team along with Demani Richardson, the Panthers lone pass interceptor of the preseason. However, cornerback Dane Jackson and safety Sam Franklin are both designated to return from IR later this season, so not all of these guys can expect to stick around for too long.
Jordan Matthews’ strong preseason not enough to earn a roster spot
Matthews was arguably the team’s best pass catcher in the preseason games with seven catches for 68 yards and a touchdown across the three games. Still, he was left off the roster in favor of incumbents Ian Thomas and Tommy Tremble and rookie fourth round pick J’Tavion Sanders. Hopefully the 32 year old at least did enough to earn himself a little bit more time in the NFL. He’s a candidate for a veteran spot on the practice squad.
Edge rusher depth looking then
The Panthers’ initial 53 man roster has four EDGE players on it, and they don’t look particularly strong. Jadeveon Clowney will start on one side with either DJ Johnson or K’Lavon Chaisson opposite him. Eku Leota had some strong moments in the preseason, but I don’t know that he can be counted on to produce reliably in real games. DJ Wonnum and Amare Barno will provide reinforcements when they heal from their respective injuries, but the position group looks thin in the meantime. The Panthers may scour the waiver wire for help here.