NFL insider claims Panthers have bottom-five roster after 2025 draft

The Carolina Panthers have not had a good roster over the last few seasons. They've spent poorly in free agency and haven't exactly made up for it in the draft. They've been a talentless hole where NFL players go to (metaphorically) die. The 2025 NFL draft might've changed that, but the jury is still out.

The Panthers appeared to turn a corner at the end of 2024, but that was probably more due to excellent coaching and elite quarterback play from Bryce Young than a talented roster. Their roster is certainly improved from last year, but how bad is it? Per Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox, it's still the fifth-worst in the sport.

Knox said the Panthers may have found their franchise QB, but they've largely failed to surround him with enough talent. He likes the addition of Tetairoa McMillan, but noted that Adam Thielen is nearly 35 and likely retiring at the end of the year, and Xavier Legette, last year's first-round pick, was "inconsistent."

Knox likes the running back room of Chuba Hubbard, Rico Dowdle, and Trevor Etienne, but added, "We're talking about a team that ranked 29th in total offense and dead-last in total defense a year ago. The Panthers should be better in 2025, but they came into the offseason with so many holes to address that they still appear to have a bottom-five roster in the NFL entering OTAs."

It's hard to disagree with the sentiment. The Panthers did a good job of addressing holes. They added two very promising edge rushers in the draft. They added a safety primed to start. They also got a tight end for valuable depth, but they didn't address every hole and they didn't totally fill the holes they did address.

The duo of Young and Canales with better help (they went 4-6 to close the year with no help) should be enough to somewhat offset the talent deficiency, but this isn't a roster built for success immediately.