Panthers announce signing from 49ers’ practice squad

The Panthers officially announced the return of LB Chandler Wooten on Tuesday morning.

The Carolina Panthers added some much-needed depth to the middle of the defense on Tuesday.

As announced by the team this morning, inside linebacker Chandler Wooten has been signed from the San Francisco 49ers’ practice squad to Carolina’s active roster. Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer was first with the news on Monday afternoon.

Wooten takes up the void left behind by yesterday’s departure of defensive lineman Jonathan Harris, who was waived following the Panthers’ 36-30 overtime win over the Arizona Cardinals in Week 16.

Head coach Dave Canales explained why they moved on from Harris.

“Yeah, bunch of different decisions,” Canales replied. “Jonathan was the guy that we released to make room for potentially bringing some other guys in and see if we can get some linebacker help.”

That help will come in the form of Wooten, who has appeared in 20 regular-season games for Carolina over the last three seasons. He’s recorded 16 combined tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery between 2022 and 2024.

Before the Wooten’s return, the Panthers carried just three inside linebackers on their active roster—Josey Jewell, Jacoby Windmon and Jon Rhattigan.

[lawrence-related id=709187,709168,709138]

Panthers HC Dave Canales provides update on WR Xavier Legette’s Week 17 status

Panthers WR Xavier Legette may have himself an uphill battle to get on the field for Week 17.

Carolina Panthers wideout Xavier Legette may have an uphill climb to get on the field in Week 17.

Head coach Dave Canales was asked about the current status of his rookie receiver, who missed the first game of his NFL career on Sunday due to a hip injury. While he was encouraged by the progress, Canales didn’t seem too sure about Legette’s availability for the team’s upcoming matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“He’s progressing really well,” he stated. “We’re takin’ it day to day with him. He was going through a return-to-play protocol through the weekend to make sure we got on top of his availability for this week.

“But we like the strides that he’s taking, and he’s gonna have to make pretty significant improvement in the next two days as we continue to evaluate him. But we definitely want to get him back out there.”

Legette, through 14 games, has recorded 41 receptions for 439 yards and four touchdowns.

The Panthers will visit the Bucs on Sunday and close up their season in Atlanta in Week 18.

[lawrence-related id=708402,708376,709183]

Panthers HC Dave Canales hints at impending roster addition on Monday

Panthers HC Dave Canales hinted at where the team’s next addition will likely come.

On Monday, the Carolina Panthers waived veteran defensive end Jonathan Harris. Harris, despite playing just 14 snaps in Week 16, made one of the biggest plays of yesterday’s 36-30 victory when he recovered a fumble in the second quarter.

So, why the move?

Head coach Dave Canales was asked why the team decided to part ways with Harris this afternoon.

“Yeah, bunch of different decisions,” Canales replied. “Jonathan was the guy that we released to make room for potentially bringing some other guys in and see if we can get some linebacker help.”

Canales would then confirm that the Panthers will be looking outside of the building to add to the inside linebacker position, a spot that has taken quite a few hits this year. Carolina has lost team captain Shaq Thompson, 2024 third-round pick Trevin Wallace and second-year ‘backer Claudin Cherelus to season-ending injuries.

Sunday’s outing saw the Panthers start Josey Jewell and undrafted rookie Jacoby Windmon in the middle of the defense. The only other inside linebacker currently on the active roster is Jon Rhattigan, who has played the vast majority of his snaps on special teams.

[lawrence-related id=709162,709168,709138]

Panthers HC Dave Canales establishes his brand in Week 16 win over Cardinals

Panthers HC Dave Canales got the signature win he’s been looking for on Sunday.

Dave Canales has spent much of his first season as the head coach of the Carolina Panthers searching for a signature win. And even though it took a little extra time, he may have finally found what he was looking for on Sunday.

The Panthers toughed out the cold and the visiting Arizona Cardinals in Week 16 to nab a 36-30 overtime victory. This past weekend’s triumph snapped a four-game losing streak, one that included three near-upsets of playoff contenders and a sloppy showing against the Dallas Cowboys just last week.

But they bounced back, actually knocking off a playoff hopeful—who are now officially eliminated from postseason contention—by playing their brand of football.

“Panthers football,” Canales said with a smile as he began his post-game presser. “We talked about ‘finish,’ and finding a way to finish, do right longer. And the defense found a way in that overtime to have a couple of balls knocked down, a sack, some big things right there.

“And then the offense, of course, just finishing the way we want to. Being able to run the ball with toughness right there. We’re in a great situation for a field goal and Chuba [Hubbard] ends up breaking a few tackles and scoring there.

“It was a great thing to celebrate with the guys. To reemphasize—playing football right, doing right longer is the way we finish. So was really happy about that.”

That type of happiness wasn’t really present throughout the first eight weeks of the season, where the Panthers had gone 1-7. Canales, in that span, had benched last year’s No. 1 overall pick, was receiving criticism for his lack of commitment to the run game and admitted to his flaws in his play-calling and decision-making process.

Some of those warts even popped up against the Cardinals on Sunday. But Canales has remained steadfast—learning along the way while keeping his players focused on the task at hand.

There is a sense that the team has bought in on Canales and his vision of a successful organization in the not-too-distant future. The effort is not a concern amongst the players and the franchise itself, and the way they’ve played feels like a far cry from the Matt Rhule and Frank Reich days.

Not only are they trying to push to the finish line on a weekly basis, but they’re also competing—and against some of the league’s best. Just ask fans of the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles how they felt after Weeks 12 and 14.

Despite the numerous holes and lack of talent on the roster, Canales has his team in the game nearly every time out. This is an early sign of an effective culture.

In 2011, first-year head coach Ron Rivera led his Panthers team to a 2-8 mark before ripping off wins in four of their final six games. Carolina experienced something similar the very next year—once again beginning at 2-8 and finishing with five wins in six outings to go 7-9.

Then, from 2013 on, the culture was established and the success followed. Rivera and the Panthers would go on to capture three straight NFC South titles—a run capped off by the franchise’s second-ever Super Bowl appearance in 2015.

This is not to say the current coach will follow in the footsteps of the winningest coach in the organization’s history. But all success stories start somewhere—and for Canales, that start might’ve come on Sunday.

[lawrence-related id=709046,709027,709140]

Panthers players seemed quite fine with knocking the Cardinals out of playoff contention

The Panthers played spoiler to the Cardinals on Sunday, and at least a few of them seemed pretty okay with it.

The Carolina Panthers went on a wild ride this afternoon, going from a 20-3 lead at one point to a frantic overtime period against the playoff-hopeful Arizona Cardinals. But by the end, they got their win—and they did it their way.

Here are some of their players’ best reactions to the thrilling 36-30 walk-off victory . . .

[lawrence-related id=709089,709079,709047]

Panthers HC Dave Canales gives his thoughts on Bryce Young’s bounce-back performance in Week 16

Bryce Young left Week 15 far behind him, as he helped lead the Panthers to an overtime win against the Cardinals on Sunday.

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young was humming since his return to the starting lineup . . . until Week 15 happened.

Last Sunday’s 30-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys saw the former No. 1 overall pick commit a career-high four turnovers, as he tossed two interceptions and lost a pair of fumbles. So, this weekend’s outing against the Arizona Cardinals presented Young with a chance to get back on track . . . and he did.

Young excelled in the role of playmaker in Week 16, completing 17 of his 26 passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns while adding another 68 yards and a score through the ground. Oh, and he didn’t give the ball away.

Head coach Dave Canales was asked for his thoughts about Young’s bounce-back performance.

“Yeah, he just played fast again,” he stated. “He was really decisive, you saw some of the scrambles early in the first half where he was able to pick up some critical downs for us there, and run one in for a touchdown. So it was about just being decisive, knowing where all the bones are buried and concepts and being able to get to the scramble when those windows open up for him. And again, just making some really nice throws when we needed him to.”

Reminiscent of another quarterback who played for the Panthers not too long ago, Young broke out for scrambles of 34 yards and 23 yards on the offense’s second possession of the afternoon. The 23-yarder wound up in the end zone, capping a six-play, 70-yard scoring drive.

He also used his arm, finding veteran wide receivers Adam Thielen and David Moore on a couple of beautiful touchdown throws later on in the contest.

Young, needless to say, was much happier at his post-game press conference this week than he was during his last.

“We won this week, so it’s a lot more fun in the locker room after the win,” he told reporters with a laugh.

He continued.

“I think this is big for us. We talked about this last part of the season being a great opportunity—just for us to finish, to set the tone for the future, kinda just lay the foundation of where we wanna go. It’s a week-to-week league. We’re just in this week, we can only do one week at a time. But just having that point of emphasis and then coming out and executing, having a great team win today.”

In his eight starts since returning under center in Week 8, Young has completed 61.1 percent of his passing attempts for 1,650 yards (206.6 yards per game), 10 touchdowns and six interceptions. He’s also rushed for three touchdowns in that span.

[lawrence-related id=709046,708870,708881]

Panthers HC Dave Canales talks about thrilling OT win over Cardinals in Week 16

Dave Canales’ Panthers did right longer in Sunday’s walk-off win over the Cardinals.

The Carolina Panthers have doubled their win total from a season ago!

And although that normally wouldn’t be something to go nuts about now, here in Week 16, the way they did so was certainly still worth celebrating.

Head coach Dave Canales spoke with reporters following his team’s 36-30 overtime triumph over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. He began his presser by praising his guys for playing their brand of ball.

“Panthers football,” Canales said with a smile. “We talked about ‘finish,’ and finding a way to finish, do right longer. And the defense found a way in that overtime to have a couple of balls knocked down, a sack, some big things right there.

“And then the offense, of course, just finishing the way we want to. Being able to run the ball with toughness right there. We’re in a great situation for a field goal and Chuba [Hubbard] ends up breaking a few tackles and scoring there.

“It was a great thing to celebrate with the guys. To reemphasize—playing football right, doing right longer is the way we finish. So was really happy about that.”

The Panthers defense, with about five minutes left in overtime, forced a punt after linebackers D.J. Wonnum and Josey Jewell converged on a sack of Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray. Then, with just over four minutes remaining, running back Chuba Hubbard broke off runs of 28 and 21 yards—with the second winding up in the end zone for the victory.

Canales was also asked about the importance of capturing the win in the Panthers’ final home game of the campaign.

“It was great,” he replied. “It was great for us to just be right here, Bank of America Stadium, with our fans here. It was a great showing by the fans. There was some great energy at the end of this finish right here.

“So to be able to show our style, great effort, great enthusiasm, great toughness, playing smart and finish, the final piece of that—it was really special to me so that we can feel what that feels like, to play our brand of football.”

[lawrence-related id=709027,707504,709002]

Bryce Young’s Week 15 hiccup should not define his 2024 emergence

Bryce Young’s lowly day against the Cowboys may prove to be just a road bump on his road to reemergence.

After a month-long benching, Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young returned under center for what was likely to be just a spot-start in Week 8. But it ended up being more than that.

The team’s 28-14 loss to the Denver Broncos that weekend proved to be the beginning of a new breath for Young, who appeared more confident and poised than he did at the start of his second NFL campaign. He might not have lit up the box score, passing for two touchdowns and two interceptions, but the 23-year-old showed glimpses of improvement.

And since then, that breath has led to new life for Young’s career. He’s led the suddenly-frisky Panthers to two wins over seven contests, a run that also included three-near-upsets of the playoff-bound Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles.

In those performances, the 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick showed resilience, comfort and composure, deadly accuracy and a knack for being the playmaking point guard the franchise selected a year ago. And again, while the numbers won’t blow many people away—as he’s averaged 213.1 passing yards per game—the exciting signs of development should.

Last Sunday, that steady momentum from Young crashed back down to Earth in Carolina’s 30-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The disappointing defeat saw Young commit a career-high four turnovers (two interceptions, two fumbles) and halt his encouraging progress.

Week 15, however, may just be a hiccup.

Young still showed slivers of confidence and ease despite his issues with ball security. Although he must be better at protecting the pigskin, his first fumble came at the tail end of an impressive scramble while his picks happened on a few brave throws.

Head coach Dave Canales talked about Young taking accountability for his giveaways on Friday.

“I think for Bryce, watching him in-game was what was so impressive,” Canales told reporters. “To see him just continue to stay in there, to have his footwork exactly where he needed to be, to throw to No. 1 in progression and really still see the field. I could not go past Monday without letting him know that.

“I’ve been around football for 15 years and to see where games like that can really pile up on a guy and to watch him handle and to be composed and to talk with his teammates and keep working through the issues—I thought was so impressive and I wanted to make sure he knew that, that that was great and that’s exactly what it looks like to play quarterback.”

Now, can Young shake off that underwhelming afternoon to finish this season on a strong note? Why not?

His play against teams such as Kansas City and Philadelphia offers a glimpse into the future of what Young could do while having average playmakers around him. He’s a quarterback who’s played on time and in rhythm for the last five to six games, and was mostly on schedule Sunday—even throughout a bad day.

If anything, Young’s confidence has not been shaken due to the trust he has instilled in his skill players, the offensive line and his offensive play-caller in Canales. This type of trust is important for a youthful quarterback and it sets a precedent for how next season goes.

One lowly game should not define how the team approaches him and the position this offseason. Patience will be key for these final three games.

[lawrence-related id=708836,708768,708805]

Panthers HC Dave Canales: ‘Bryce Young is gonna finish the season for us’

Panthers HC Dave Canales was asked if he’ll give Andy Dalton another look before the end of the season, and it doesn’t seem that way.

With only three games to go here in the 2024 season, Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales has finally put the weekly quarterback conundrum to bed.

Last Sunday’s disappointing defeat to the Dallas Cowboys wasn’t Bryce Young’s finest hour under center. The second-year passer committed a career-high four turnovers in the 30-14 loss, tossing two interceptions and losing a pair of fumbles in his first real hiccup since returning to the starting lineup.

But even though Young couldn’t find a handle on the pigskin that day, Canales told reporters this afternoon that the 23-year-old still handled the situation well.

“I mean, this was a career-high,” he said after practice. “I think for Bryce, watching him in-game was what was so impressive. To see him just continue to stay in there, to have his footwork exactly where he needed to be, to throw to No. 1 in progression and really still see the field. I could not go past Monday without letting him know that.

“I’ve been around football for 15 years and to see where games like that can really pile up on a guy and to watch him handle and to be composed and to talk with his teammates and keep working through the issues—I thought was so impressive and I wanted to make sure he knew that, that that was great and that’s exactly what it looks like to play quarterback.”

Week 15 marked Young’s seventh game since reclaiming the starting job back from veteran Andy Dalton. He’s completed 60.6 of his passes for 1,492 yards (213.1 per game), eight touchdowns and six interceptions over those outings.

Canales, who has taken the starting quarterback decision on a week-by-week basis since the switch, was then asked if he’d like to see Dalton on the field again before the end of the campaign.

“Bryce is gonna finish the season for us,” he replied.

The Panthers are hosting the Arizona Cardinals for their final home game here in Week 16 and will close up with visits to see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Atlanta Falcons in Weeks 17 and 18.

[lawrence-related id=708836,708793,708599]

Ejiro Evero’s future with the Panthers is tricky to predict

The Panthers defense continues to struggle in 2024. But is moving away from Ejiro Evero the answer? Well, it’s not that easy.

The 2024 campaign has largely been a pretty rough one for the 3-11 Carolina Panthers, who were officially eliminated from playoff contention this past Sunday. And one of the key reasons for this season of struggles has been the team’s league-worst defense—which has allowed the most points per game (29.9) and the second-most yards per game (386.2).

While the group was on track to take a step back following the losses of linebackers Brian Burns and Frankie Luvu, what’s been left is far worse than what most may have imagined. Now, with the organization possibly preparing to go full Extreme Makeover: Home Edition on the unit this upcoming offseason, the job security of defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero feels quite uncertain.

Many had hoped Evero would be the type of coach who could elevate the talent at his disposal. He was able to do so with the third-ranked passing defense in 2023—when players such as cornerbacks D’Shawn Jamison and Dicaprio Bootle were starting in place of Jaycee Horn and Donte Jackson.

So why couldn’t he do it this year?

Well, it’s become very clear that the Panthers have been rolling out players who might be better fits on some UFL rosters. They lacked depth on all three levels entering the season—and losing Pro Bowl defensive tackle Derrick Brown and inside linebacker Shaq Thompson early on only magnified their issues.

Carolina lacks quality talent nearly everywhere on defense. For any defensive coordinator, that is hard to overcome—but at some point, the coaching staff must be able to make up for those holes.

Evero is from the Vic Fangio tree, and is known for his unique disguises with coverages out of Cover 3 base alignments and how he generates pressure. That approach yielded admirable results, both in 2022 with the Denver Broncos and in 2023 with the Panthers.

Yet, Evero has his downfalls. While is system has shown to work in the past, there is very little margin for error and a lack of diversity in coverages used.

After this past weekend’s 30-14 loss to the Cowboys, Horn had told Panthers beat writer Sheena Quick that he would prefer to travel with All-Pro wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, but had to play within the scheme. Lamb tallied nine catches for 116 yards and a touchdown—most of which occurred outside of Horn’s control.

Head coach Dave Canales made a tangible point in Monday’s press conference about why Horn played within the scheme Sunday:

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Horn’s comments were eye-opening—especially in a game where the Panthers needed to win to keep their momentum from three consecutive near-upsets against playoff-bound teams.

A talent like his should be traveling with someone like Lamb, Mike Evans, A.J. Brown or any team’s game-changing No. 1 pass catcher. Defensive backs Mike Jackson and Chau Smith-Wade have both flashed the capability to handle one-on-one man coverage snaps and play sufficiently, but they’re not Jaycee Horn.

A defensive coordinator must be diverse with his system. And to this point during his time with Carolina, Evero hasn’t done enough in terms of mixing and matching coverages and putting the players he has on the field in the best positions to succeed.

Unfortunately, he is also dealing with a talent disparity. This is why deciding on his future will be a tough one for Canales and the Panthers.

Connor Rogers of the NFL Stock Exchange Podcast recently explained in a Carolina edition of “Fix the Franchise” that it is dangerous to fire someone like Evero. Along with his track record of recent success, the continuity he’d provide into a third year is important for a rebuilding roster.

Should Carolina allow Evero to coach out the final year of his contract in 2025, there will likely be a total revamp of the defensive talent.

The safety room should look very different next year, as should the depth and overall level of talent up front, at the second level and within the secondary. Giving Evero the right pieces to operate the unit he needs to field a successful defense will be paramount.

In the right circumstances, Evero is an adequate defensive coordinator and future head coach. His players compete and play with incredible effort.

Yet, no one should fault the Panthers for wanting to try something new and move off of another piece from the failed Frank Reich regime.

The next three games for Evero may be a three-week interview process for 2025.

[lawrence-related id=708763,708734,708696]