The Carolina Panthers are heading into the kind of roster squeeze that always leaves a few bruised feelings behind, and one of the names drawing attention is Haynes King.
FanSided’s Zachary Rotman and Mark Powell labeled King the Panthers’ “most painful” cut, and that’s where the debate gets interesting. King has only appeared in the Hall of Fame Game so far, but that one outing was enough to make a case that he belongs on an NFL roster. The catch, as the reporting notes, is that he needs to get healthy if he’s going to stick.
Rotman and Powell raised the question directly: "This performance has some Carolina Panthers fans dreaming of him potentially being Bryce Young's backup, and while sure, that's possible, is Dave Canales really going to have King, an undrafted rookie, leapfrog a far more proven option in Kenny Pickett on the depth chart?"
Their answer leaned toward doubt. They pointed out that King could end up on the practice squad, but that also opens the door for another team to take him.
That’s the heart of the issue for Carolina. Pickett gives the Panthers what a backup quarterback is supposed to provide: experience, scheme familiarity, and a steady hand behind the starter. The report also notes that the team is paying Pickett $4 million for his leadership and mentoring of Young.
Still, the argument for keeping King is rooted in more than just quarterback depth. At 6'2" and 212 pounds, he could give Carolina something different in short-yardage situations. The Panthers already experimented with Mitchell Evans taking quarterback sneak snaps to help protect the smaller Bryce Young, but King would offer a more natural option under center.
That matters because a quarterback on those plays doesn’t just signal a sneak. He can hand off, bootleg, or throw, which would make those situations harder to read. The article also suggests the Panthers could open the door to more creative two-quarterback looks, something the offense has not really shown under Dave Canales.
King has also said during the offseason that he’s a QB and not a hybrid, but the idea here is simple: he’s talented enough to keep, even if he’s not projected as an NFL starter. The Panthers may be comfortable with Pickett as the backup, but cutting King outright would mean giving away a player who could help them in specific packages.
The one complication is obvious. If King can’t get back on the field, it becomes much harder to justify a roster spot. But based on what he has already shown, the Panthers would be taking a real risk if they let him go with no backup plan.
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