The Carolina Panthers’ offense still comes with a big question mark heading into 2026, but their defense is starting to look like the safer bet.
That unit has already come a long way, going from historically awful in 2024 to middle-of-the-road in 2025. Now, it’s drawing real attention as a group that could crack the top 10 overall next season.
Ted Nguyen of The Athletic is among those buying the upside. In a list of NFL defenses he believes are ready to break out in the upcoming campaign, he pointed to Carolina’s additions up front - Jaelan Phillips and Devin Lloyd - as the kind of moves that can change the shape of the entire defense.
"Phillips will help to disrupt outside runs, while Lloyd’s ability to play all over the front, including the line of scrimmage, will allow [Ejiro] Evero to get creative with shifting or stemming his fronts before the snap. That will make it harder on offensive lines to execute their blocking schemes...
Evero finally has the pieces he needs to run the system that he wants to. The Panthers have some depth issues, but this should be the year that Evero leads a top-10 defense."
There’s reason to see the run defense taking another step, too. Lloyd should help there, and so should Lee Hunter, the Panthers’ second-round pick from the spring. On the back end, the coverage has already improved a lot, with Mike Jackson now part of the cornerback room.
The biggest swing factor remains the pass rush. Carolina managed just 30 sacks in 2025, tied for the third-fewest in the league, and posted a 16.5-percent pressure rate, which ranked second-lowest. Ejiro Evero doesn’t blitz as a rule, so the front seven has to generate the heat on its own.
That puts the spotlight on Phillips and Lloyd first and foremost, but Nic Scourton and Princely Umanmielen also need to take a step in their second seasons if this defense is going to live up to the buzz.
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