The Panthers are 3-2, and that alone has changed the temperature around Carolina’s trade deadline. It’s not a reason to chase a splashy deal, but it is enough to justify picking up the phone if there’s a chance to improve the roster without paying premium draft-pick prices.
That’s the sweet spot here: useful veterans, modest cost, no blockbuster overreaction. Carolina is in the NFC South race, but it is still a team with holes. If Dan Morgan can patch one of them with a later-round pick, there’s a real case to make the move.
One name that jumps off the page is Donte Jackson. He spent six seasons with the Panthers after Carolina drafted him in the second round in 2018, and he also played his final year here in Ejiro Evero's defense.
Carolina could use help at corner, especially with Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson both on injured reserve and the team already digging deep into the depth chart. Jackson is on an 0-6 Chargers team, and while there’s no guarantee Los Angeles moves him, he’s exactly the kind of veteran Carolina should ask about if the Chargers decide to sell.
A Day 3 pick for a corner with starting experience who already knows Evero? That’s a deal worth considering.
Khalil Mack is the obvious headline name, and for good reason. He’s 35, but he’s still producing, with three sacks through six games on a one-year deal for a Chargers team nobody expected to be 0-6.
Mack has said he’s still chasing a ring in Los Angeles, so he may not be available at all. Still, Carolina should make the call.
The pass rush has flashed at times this season and disappeared at others, and Mack wouldn’t need to rescue the defense. He’d just need to strengthen the rotation.
The price is where this gets tricky. A second-round pick is out, and even a third feels rich for a 35-year-old rental.
If the asking price starts with one of Carolina’s Day 3 picks, then it starts making sense.
Harold Landry III is a quieter option, but not every deadline move has to be loud. He’s more of a rotational piece at this stage, which is exactly how he’d fit in Carolina.
The Panthers are not asking him to turn back into the player San Francisco hoped it was getting with the No. 3 pick in 2017. They’d just need another experienced defensive lineman to help stabilize the front.
With injuries already testing the roster, and Tershawn Wharton back in the mix, there’s still room for more help. If Tennessee would take a late pick, that’s the kind of low-key move that can matter in November and December.
At running back, the conversation is a little harder to start, but Tyrone Tracy Jr. belongs in it. Chuba Hubbard just ran for 120 yards against Philadelphia, so this is not about replacing him.
Hubbard carried 28 times and helped Carolina take control in the second half, and that’s exactly the point: the Panthers aren’t looking for a new starter. Tracy has rushed for more than 1,600 yards over his first three seasons and can contribute as a receiver and on special teams.
The Giants just released Najee Harris, and Tracy scored twice against New Orleans, so New York may want him more now than it did a few weeks ago. Even so, Carolina should ask.
If the price is a late pick, Tracy gives the Panthers another option behind Hubbard without changing the offense around its starter.
The most complicated name on the list is Jauan Jennings. That’s because Carolina already has something it likes with Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker.
Those two finally got on the field together against Philadelphia, and the results were encouraging: Coker had 97 yards, McMillan finished with 86, and Bryce Young had two receivers who could actually force a defense to account for more than one threat. Jennings would not be a luxury addition so much as insurance.
He’s physical, he’ll block, and he has proven production when given chances, including 975 receiving yards and nine touchdowns in 2024. This year with Minnesota, though, he has only two catches in four games.
With Xavier Legette on injured reserve, another veteran body would give Carolina cover if health becomes a problem again. But the price matters.
If Minnesota wants something substantial, pass. If the number drops low enough, then it becomes a real conversation.
That’s the larger picture for Carolina. The 3-2 start changes the deadline calculus, but it should not change the long-term discipline.
The Panthers just beat Philadelphia 25-14 despite 13 penalties for 149 yards, which says two things at once: they’re good enough to stay in the race, and they’re still not close to finished. That’s why the first- and second-round picks should stay put, and the third-rounder probably should too.
But later picks? Those are fair game if the right veteran becomes available. For a team that hasn’t often had a deadline where buying made sense, this year is different.
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