Haynes King may have just given the Panthers a new wrinkle they can’t ignore.
One week after the NFL Hall of Fame game, Carolina fans are still talking about King’s first real NFL opportunity, and for good reason. He put up 180 passing yards, threw 2 touchdowns, and added a rushing score that sealed the win as time expired. For a player long viewed as more runner than passer, the throwing performance stood out just as much as the numbers did.
Coming out of Georgia Tech, King carried the label of a dangerous rushing quarterback who still had work to do as a thrower. That’s why his showing mattered. He mixed in a variety of throws that suggested real growth as a complete quarterback, not just a gadget athlete.
The problem for King is obvious: Bryce Young is already in place.
Young is entering his fourth year, and the stakes around his season are massive. A lucrative multi-year extension could be on the table, while Carolina is also working through Young’s fifth-year option and trying to determine whether he’s the quarterback who can truly lead a winning franchise. That leaves King in a tricky spot on the roster, at least as a traditional QB.
But even if he never settles in as the main passer, King still has a path to matter.
ESPN Insider Adam Schefter reported that Carolina could use him as more than a quarterback, turning him into a versatile weapon in the backfield and in the slot as a pass catcher. Panthers fans have seen this kind of role before, with Taysom Hill doing something similar for the division-rival Saints.
There’s also the speed element. King is still a dangerous runner, and his athletic profile jumps off the page. At the NFL Scouting Combine, he ran a 4.46-second 40-yard dash, a time faster than Josh Allen, Trevor Lawrence, Patrick Mahomes, and other elite quarterbacks when they entered the league.
That kind of burst doesn’t come around often, and Carolina could take advantage of it in creative ways. Dave Canales and OC Brad Idzik could line King up in different formations, use him on sweeps, or even give him direct snaps while Young remains on the field to catch a defense off guard.
In the short term, the most natural place to start would be in short-yardage situations. Another option would be to take Young off the field, add an extra tight end, and let King attack with more blocking help and his bigger, physical frame.
Nobody outside the Panthers’ building knows exactly how it will all look. But one thing is clear: Haynes King has shown enough to make himself useful in more than one way.
In Other News...
Panthers Bubble Battles Are Starting To Take Shape After Debut
The Hall of Fame Game gave Carolina a first real look at the players fighting for those last few roster spots, and the evaluation process already has started to separate the names on the edge. A group that includes AJ Dillon, David Moore, Jimmy Horn, Ja'Seem Reed, John Metchie, Chandler Zavala, Haynes King, Cam Gill, Elijah Garcia, Lathan Ransom, Zakee Wheatley and Jackson Kuwatch all came out of the debut with their roster cases affected one way or another.
Special teams, meanwhile, already looks settled in one area, with JJ Jansen at long snapper, Sam Martin at punter and Ryan Fitzgerald at kicker all sitting in firm spots without competition. For the rest of the bubble crowd, though, the work is only getting more intense as the Panthers sort through who can make enough of an impression to stick through the rest of camp. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Give Bryce Young Another Proven Weapon For NFC Push
The Panthers have made another move to bolster the passing game, agreeing to a one-year contract with former Pro Bowl tight end Darren Waller, according to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter. Waller arrives with recent stops in Miami and New York on his rsum, and Carolina is counting on him to add both depth and proven receiving ability as it continues shaping the offense around Bryce Young.
For a team looking ahead to the 2026 season, this is the kind of addition that can matter in more ways than one. The Panthers have spent plenty of time trying to give Young a steadier set of options, and Waller brings a track record that should make him an immediate focal point in that effort. The real question now is how quickly Carolina can turn this into a more productive and more flexible attack. [Read more 🡒]