Defense wasn’t the primary focus for the Carolina Panthers during the 2023 NFL draft, as they were quite busy securing the face of their franchise. Nonetheless, they did make a handful of intriguing additions to that side of the ball last weekend.
So, in turn, let’s make some adjustments to our projections for their defensive depth chart.
Defensive line
Position | 1st string | 2nd string | 3rd string |
DE | Derrick Brown | Henry Anderson | Raequan Williams |
NT | Shy Tuttle | Marquan McCall | John Penisini |
DE | DeShawn Williams | Bravvion Roy | Jalen Redmond |
Last weekend didn’t do much to alter this group. The only addition to the front was Redmond, an undrafted free agent out of the University of Oklahoma.
In the middle
Position | 1st string | 2nd string | 3rd string | 4th string | 5th string |
OLB | Brian Burns | Marquis Haynes Sr. | Amaré Barno | Kobe Jones | Travez Moore |
ILB | Shaq Thompson | Kamu Grugier-Hill | Chandler Wooten | Bumper Pool | |
ILB | Jeremy Chinn | Brandon Smith | Arron Mosby | Austin Ajiake | |
OLB | Frankie Luvu | Yetur Gross-Matos | DJ Johnson | Eku Leota |
With Chinn expected to pick up more looks closer to the line of scrimmage, he can slot into the middle at times. The versatile Luvu, who has chops as a pass rusher, should also move around a bit—between the inside and out.
As for their raw third-round pick in Johnson, expect defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero and his staff to bring the athletic 6-foot-4, 260-pounder along a bit slowly out of the gate.
Secondary
Position | 1st string | 2nd string | 3rd string | 4th string | 5th string |
CB | Jaycee Horn | CJ Henderson | Stantley Thomas-Oliver III | Rejzohn Wright | Mark Milton |
CB | Donte Jackson | Keith Taylor Jr. | Herb Miller | Colby Richardson | |
SS | Vonn Bell | Eric Rowe | Jammie Robinson | Nico Bolden | |
FS | Xavier Woods | Sam Franklin | Myles Dorn |
There may not have been 144 guys better than Robinson out of the draft, but there are a few he’ll be looking up at here. His experience and hard-nosed attitude, however, may earn him some early snaps from the slot.