Tag: Giovanni Ricci

Panthers not expected to tender TE Giovanni Ricci

As is the case with WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette, TE Giovanni Ricci will not be tendered by the Panthers.

Ihmir Smith-Marsette is about to be joined on the open market by a familiar face.

According to Joseph Person of The Athletic, the Carolina Panthers will not tender tight end Giovanni Ricci—who is set to enter free agency next week. Person also confirmed an earlier report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, who noted that Smith-Marsette will not be tendered by the team as well.

Ricci and Smith-Marsette entered the 2024 offseason as restricted free agents, which gave the Panthers a bit of control in terms of their next deal. But today’s reported decisions make both players unrestricted free agents, giving them the right to sign away to another team without having to wait for Carolina to potentially match any offers.

Originally a fullback, Ricci entered the league as an undrafted free agent with the Panthers in 2020. The Western Michigan product eventually transitioned to tight end, where he’s amassed nine receptions for 102 yards over the last two seasons.

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Full list of 2024 Panthers free agents

The Panthers currently have 26 players slated for free agency in 2024.

Things have changed a bit since the last time we brought you this free agent list.

A few weeks back, the Carolina Panthers held on to a few of their own—re-signing tight end Stephen Sullivan and defensive linemen Nick Thurman LaBryan Ray to fresh deals.

So, let’s take an updated look at the team’s pending 2024 free agents.

Panthers’ updated 53-man roster after Tuesday’s flurry of moves

Gallery: Carolina Panthers’ updated 53-man roster after Tuesday’s flurry of moves

The Carolina Panthers’ active roster will look a lot different when the team hits the field this afternoon.

Tuesday brought a flurry of moves, including four adjustments to the injured reserve list and a pair of signees. In is guard Austin Corbett, offensive lineman Brett Toth and outside linebacker Luiji Vialin and out is tight end Giovanni Ricci, outside linebacker Yetur Gross-Matos and safety Jeremy Chinn.

So, here’s a fresh look at the updated 53-man program:

Panthers sign 2 players on Tuesday

The Panthers signed OL Brett Toth and OLB Luiji Vilain to their active roster on Tuesday.

Tuesday brought quite a bit of shelf work for the Carolina Panthers—who activated right guard Austin Corbett while also sending safety Jeremy Chinn, outside linebacker Yetur Gross-Matos and tight end Giovanni Ricci to injured reserve. So, in case you haven’t done the math, two spots needed to be filled.

As officially announced by the team, those spots have been filled by offensive lineman Brett Toth and outside linebacker Luiji Vilain. Toth and Vilain—who were members of the Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings practice squads, respectively—will now join Carolina’s active roster.

Toth, who attended the United States Military Academy, broke into the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Eagles in 2019. The Charleston, S.C. native played in a total of 17 games for Philadelphia between 2020 and 2021—recording 102 snaps at right tackle, 14 at right guard and 30 at center.

Vilain, fresh off an elevation into last night’s win over the San Francisco 49ers, has appeared in four games for the Vikings in the last two seasons. He’s amassed four tackles.

In addition, the Panthers also released offensive lineman Justin McCray from their practice squad.

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Panthers place Jeremy Chinn, Yetur Gross-Matos, Giovanni Ricci on IR

The Panthers have placed S Jeremy Chinn, OLB Yetur Gross-Matos and TE Giovanni Ricci on injured reserve.

The Carolina Panthers made an unfortunate and uneven swap on Tuesday, and it had nothing to do with the upcoming trade deadline.

As announced by the team this afternoon, starting right guard Austin Corbett has been activated after missing the first six games of the season. But, they’ll be sending three players back the other way—as safety Jeremy Chinn (quadriceps), outside linebacker Yetur Gross-Matos (hamstring) and tight end Giovanni Ricci (shoulder) have all been placed on injured reserve.

ESPN senior NFL insider Adam Schefter first shined a light on Chinn’s setback last week, revealing that the fourth-year defensive back sustained a “significant” quad injury in the Week 6 loss to the Miami Dolphins. Schefter also added that Chinn would be expected to miss up to six weeks, so his placement on IR isn’t much of a surprise.

Gross-Matos’ placement, however, is. Chinn’s fellow 2020 draftee was off to the best start of his pro career, as he racked up 2.5 sacks and five tackles for a loss through the team’s six outings.

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Thomas Brown talks about lack of production from Panthers TEs

OC Thomas Brown on lack of production from Panthers TEs: It’s not just about touches and catches

2023 really seemed like the year where the Carolina Panthers would finally see some numbers from the tight end position. Their new head coach was considered quite tight end-friendly, their new offensive coordinator was a tight ends coach under Sean McVay and they signed a solid pass catcher in Hayden Hurst.

But, uh, the stats still aren’t there.

Through four games, Panthers tight ends have combined for 104 yards and one touchdown on 13 receptions. So, that new offensive coordinator was asked about the lack of production on Thursday.

“Well, I think one thing when you talk about the tight end group is when you understand the position,” Thomas Brown said prior to this afternoon’s practice. “And having had a chance to coach that before I came here in L.A.—that’s a spot that kinda has a lot of involvement with the offense. I think when you talk about overall success, it’s not just about touches and catches. What they do in the run game and protection game is a big part of overall success.”

Carolina’s group of Hurst, Tommy Tremble, Ian Thomas and Giovanni Ricci has not been tasked with much from a receiving standpoint—having been targeted a total of 20 times thus far. They haven’t been particularly awesome in the run game or in the protection game either, as none currently have a top-20 grade from Pro Football Focus in run- or pass-blocking.

Regardless, there are 13 games to go and plenty to figure out—and it’s not just the tight ends who need to step it up.

“And I won’t just holler at that group and say there needs to be more production,” Brown added. “We need more production overall, from everybody. It’s not just that one group in particular.”

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Carolina Panthers 53-man roster projection: Pre-training camp edition

With training camp less than a month away, let’s roll out our latest projections for the Panthers’ 53-man roster.

Now that we’re in July, the month where NFL players begin to return from their summer breaks, it’s time to take another crack at predicting the Carolina Panthers roster.

So, here are our pre-training camp projections for the 2023 53-man squad.

6 Panthers who should consider wearing No. 0

Which Panthers should consider wearing the No. 0 uniform? Here are our six picks:

On Tuesday, NFL owners voted to put the No. 0 back into its teams’ wardrobes—giving players, for the first time in 50 years, a chance to don the digit. So, that got us thinking—which Carolina Panthers players could be a hero with a zero?

Here are our six candidates for the new number.

(And remember, offensive and defensive linemen—despite being the best possible prospects for the number—are excluded in the rule.)

Panthers sign 9 players on Monday

Tight ends Giovanni Ricci and Stephen Sullivan were among the nine players signed by the Panthers on Monday.

Less than 24 hours after the book on their 2022 season closed, the Carolina Panthers got started writing their new one. And they began by allowing a bunch of their players to write their names on new deals.

As announced by the team on Monday afternoon, the Panthers have signed nine players to contracts for the 2023 campaign. Of the nine inked were tight ends Giovanni Ricci and Stephen Sullivan—who were set to become exclusive-rights free agents heading into the offseason.

Ricci fist joined Carolina as an undrafted free agent in 2020 out of Western Michigan University. He’s gone on to appear in 31 games for the Panthers between 2021 and 2022—amassing eight receptions for 100 yards.

Sullivan, before moving over to Charlotte in 2021, was a fifth-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks in 2020. He’s caught two passes for 46 yards over 17 games.

The team also signed seven members of the practice squad to reserve/future deals. They are as follows:

  • OL Deonte Brown
  • RB Spencer Brown
  • DE Kobe Jones
  • LB Arron Mosby
  • WR C.J. Saunders
  • DT Raequan Williams
  • WR Derek Wright

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