Panthers Make Interesting Decision Involving Claudin Cherelus

Jun 11, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers linebacker Claudin Cherelus (53) performs a mobility drill during minicamp at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Panthers Make Interesting Decision Involving Claudin Cherelus

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Bryce Lazenby | Last updated Sep 30, 2026 9:49 PM ET

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The Carolina Panthers have had to do some roster maneuvering this week due to injuries.

The team promoted guard Torricelli Simpkins III and waived Maema Njongmeta on Tuesday, while also making some practice squad moves. Last week, we learned that linebacker Claudin Cherelus was going to injured reserve.

It was disappointing, because the Panthers don’t have much depth at linebacker. Devin Lloyd was unable to play in Week 3, so it would have been nice to have Cherelus out there. Well, we won’t be seeing Cherelus on the field for the Panthers any time soon. The team opted for a surprising route with the linebacker.

Panthers Waive Cherelus with Injury Settlement

On Wednesday, it was revealed that the Panthers waived Cherelus from injured reserve with an injury settlement.

This means that Cherelus will now be subjected to waivers, and if he is claimed, he’ll be able to play. The Panthers could have simply kept Cherelus on injured reserve, but instead, they opted to just move on.

Cherelus was fighting for a starting job this summer, but he ultimately failed to impress enough. As a result, the team signed Bobby Okereke to handle the other starting job, which is a move that has paid dividends so far.

Why Panthers Waived Cherelus

Carolina Panthers general manager Dan Morgan during the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium.© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

So did the Panthers just decide they don’t need Cherelus anymore? Maybe not.

ESPN’s Mike Kaye brought up an interesting point. The Panthers already have several players on injured reserve who they may want to activate later this season. Under NFL rules, teams can only designate eight players to return from IR.

Some of the guys on IR who could return are Mike Jackson, Jaycee Horn, Jonathon Brooks, Brady Christensen, and Trevor Etienne. Maybe the Panthers are deciding to risk losing Cherelus on waivers and then re-signing him later once he’s healthy.

If this is the case, the Panthers could circumvent the eight designated players rule. Kaye added that Cherelus is only expected to miss a few weeks, so it’s possible the Panthers simply bring him back once he’s healthy.

Important context on this: Remember, you only get eight designations to return from IR in the regular season, and there are a several guys who could return (Horn, Jackson, Etienne, Christensen, Martin-Scott, Brooks) already, so if you want a guy to return but not count against… https://t.co/AWsJAUHto8
— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) September 30, 2026