The Carolina Panthers have some real optimism around their squad this year. After all, the team won the NFC South in 2025 after not having the highest expectations, so it’s not unrealistic to expect another playoff return.
The team took that solid roster from last year and added some nice reinforcements. Devin Lloyd and Jaelan Phillips were added to the defense, while the team expects a big leap from quarterback Bryce Young.
The NFC South is also still extremely questionable as a division, so you’d expect most people to imagine the team being middle-of-the-road in 2026, at the very least. However, due to a tough schedule and lack of faith in Young, not everybody is on board.
ESPN’s Mike Clay recently ranked each team’s position group and overall roster, and the Panthers will not be happy with where they ended up.
Panthers’ Roster Considered One of League’s Worst
Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images
Clay gave each team’s position group a ranking and then averaged those rankings to see where the overall roster ranks. This is where the Panthers’ positions ended up in the rankings:
QB: 23
RB: 30
WR: 23
TE: 26
OL: 22
IDL: 8
EDGE: 28
LB: 20
CB: 14
S: 20
So the interior defensive line is the only position group even ranked inside the top 10. The running back room is ranked the lowest, coming in at No. 30.
Looking at those rankings, you can probably assume the overall roster isn’t ranked very highly, and you’d be right. According to this, the Panthers have the No. 29 ranked roster in the league. Only the Tennessee Titans, Arizona Cardinals, and Miami Dolphins have worse-rated rosters than Panthers.
To be honest, I think the team is very undrrated here. The running back room at No. 30? That seems like a stretch. The Panthers have Chuba Hubbard, who has a 1,000-yard season under his belt, and Jonathon Brooks, who was one of the most productive college rushers in his class. Only two teams have situations than that?
The two other rankings that really stand out are offensive line and cornerback. Surely this ranking pretends that Taylor Moton and Ikem Ekwonu just never come back, because otherwise, I don’t know how to explain it.
With the cornerbacks, the Panthers genuinely have one of the best starting duos in the league, yet they come in at No. 14? I understand the depth behind Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson isn’t great, but that duo alone should command a higher ranking.
