The vibes were pretty much immaculate for the Carolina Panthers this past Sunday—as they stunned the Las Vegas Raiders in an electric, feel-good 36-22 win. Heck, the recently-demoted Bryce Young even appeared to be having some fun from the bench.
But not all was well.
Nearly halfway through the Week 3 upset, quarterback Andy Dalton found wideout Adam Thielen for an absolute beauty of a 31-yard touchdown connection. The receiving end of the score, however, resulted in a hamstring injury for Thielen—one that will sideline the veteran for at least four weeks.
That, of course, isn’t great news—especially for an offense that has just come to life under their new starting quarterback. Even at 34 years old, Thielen is still a featured piece of Carolina’s puzzle.
So, what should we expect to see on offense in his absence?
Here are a few thoughts . . .
The importance of Diontae Johnson
Johnson was considered a key cog for Carolina’s passing game as soon as he was acquired back in March. Heck, he’s the cog.
Here’s what head coach Dave Canales had to say this summer about shaping the aerial attack around the former Pro Bowl wideout:
“As we build our offense, we really try to feature someone. And for us right now—where’s Diontae Johnson at? We have our progressions and we’re gonna move him around our formation. But the rest of the guys have to come alive as the coverage is dictated.”
Johnson himself has come alive after a deathly-quiet start—notching a career-high 122 receiving yards and a touchdown on eight grabs in Week 3. That performance saw him targeted a total of 14 times by Dalton, who was at his most decisive when looking Johnson’s way.
We saw a similar dynamic from Dalton’s lone start in 2023, when he found Thielen for 11 catches, 145 yards and a score on 14 targets against the Seattle Seahawks. Like Johnson, Thielen is seen as a go-to receiver by Dalton—which would’ve given Carolina two very safe and reliable options moving forward.
But now that there’s one, it’s up to Johnson to solidify his role as Dalton’s best bud.
It’s time for the youngsters to step up
A certain first-round receiver was jonesing for some action recently. And well, he’s probably going to be getting it.
Rookie Xavier Legette will presumably step up into a more featured position. The explosive 6-foot-3, 227-pounder is already reaping the benefits under a new quarterback, as he ripped off a 35-yard catch-and-run from Dalton on Sunday.
He should be joined by Jonathan Mingo, who is looking to make some sort of positive statement after a disappointing rookie campaign in 2023. The next man up on the depth chart, Mingo should get more burn in the absence of Thielen.
Oh, and don’t overlook Jalen Coker either. The undrafted rookie, who has now been promoted to the active roster in Thielen’s absence, quickly caught Canales’ eye in the spring and went on to be Carolina’s leading receiver in the summer.
Who mans the slot?
Thielen was deployed mostly out of the slot, where he saw 73.1 percent of his snaps. His 57 looks from the inside also lead the offense.
But who will take the reins on that spot now?
Canales might not be afraid to get creative. As the offensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023, he played the 6-foot-5, 231-pound Mike Evans out of the slot on 29.4 percent of his snaps—the fourth-highest mark of the future Hall of Famer’s 11-year career.
The highest shares from the slot, however, showed up with the speedsters. Trey Palmer and Deven Thompkins, whom the Panthers rostered this offseason, led the Bucs in slot deployment at 55.4 percent and 64.7 percent, respectively.
Carolina, however, doesn’t really have a speedy slot merchant. Outside of Johnson, Legette, Mingo and Coker, the only other wideout on the active roster is veteran David Moore.
So, yeah, creativity will likely have to come into play. And as of now, Mingo has seen the second-most looks out of the slot (30) through Week 3.
