The Carolina Panthers are heading into the 2026 NFL season with a different kind of pressure on them. After sneaking into the playoffs as NFC South champions last year, Bryce Young and company now have to prove that run was the start of something real, not just a brief spike.
That’s where the offense still feels unfinished. Young remains the biggest question, but he’s not the only one. Carolina also has to figure out whether its ground game is good enough to help carry the load.
Right now, the Panthers are set to lean on Chuba Hubbard as the starter, with Jonathon Brooks behind him. Trevor Etienne and AJ Dillon are also on the roster. But none of that group is exactly the kind of backfield that makes defenses lose sleep.
So if Carolina wants to get aggressive, there’s at least one intriguing name to watch: New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara.
Kamara has been floated as a trade target throughout the entire 2026 offseason, and the idea of him landing with a division rival would certainly turn heads. Whether the Saints would actually send him to Carolina is another matter, but he’d be worth the gamble if the opportunity came up.
The 30-year-old had a down season in 2025, appearing in 11 games and running 131 times for 471 yards and a touchdown. He also added 33 catches for 186 yards.
That’s a far cry from the peak version of Kamara, but the upside is still there. In 2024, he posted 950 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 228 carries, while also hauling in 68 passes for 543 yards and two more scores.
Even now, Kamara could bring something the Panthers don’t currently have enough of: explosive plays on the ground and a proven receiving threat out of the backfield for Young.
In Other News...
Bryce Young Debate Just Took Another Turn For Panthers Fans
Bryce Youngs future in Carolina has been one of the leagues most debated quarterback topics, and the conversation got another push this week when former Panthers general manager Marty Hurney voiced confidence in the former No. 1 pick. Youngs record as a starter has left plenty of room for skepticism, but he has also piled up more than 8,000 passing yards and 49 touchdowns since arriving in Carolina, enough production to keep the argument alive about what he can become with the right support around him.
Panthers offensive coordinator Brad Idzik added to that optimism by pointing to Youngs competitiveness and his ability to deliver in critical moments. Even with the questions that still follow him, Youngs first appearance on the NFLs Top 100 list at No. 98 suggests the league is starting to take notice of his progress. The bigger issue now is whether Carolina sees enough consistency to make a longer-term commitment, or whether this remains a wait-and-see situation heading into the offseason. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Just Got Linked To A Bryce Young Backup Plan
Bryce Youngs uneven start has kept the Panthers in the conversation any time quarterback speculation comes up, and the latest round of chatter points to Carolina once again being linked to a possible backup plan. The idea is not hard to understand: the franchise still needs to sort out what it has at the position, and any hint of another young quarterback with upside is going to draw attention.
One name being floated around the league is a former top pick whose tools still intrigue evaluators even though the results have been mixed. The appeal is obvious for a team that is still searching for stability under center, but the real question is whether Carolina would see enough value to make a move and try to unlock a different kind of talent than the one already in the room. [Read more 🡒]
Bryce Young Is Giving Panthers Fans Real Hope For 2026
Bryce Youngs rise has given Carolina something it has not had in a while: real reason to look past the present and imagine a better 2026. Since returning to the starting lineup in the middle of the 2024 season, Young has trended upward, and the Panthers have ridden that improvement all the way to their first playoff appearance since 2017 and their first NFC South title since 2015.
The optimism is easy to understand, because Young looks like a quarterback whose best football may still be ahead of him. Still, the next step is about more than flashes, and the questions around consistency have not disappeared, especially with his limited history of big-yardage outings. If he keeps building on this stretch, Carolinas outlook gets a lot more interesting. [Read more 🡒]