While the Panthers offense features an exciting new group of players, the biggest concern for Carolina comes on the other side of the ball. Not only is the team on track to have the youngest defense in the last decade, but the unit was also ranked last in the league after losing Luke Kuechly to retirement this offseason and several other veterans to free agency.
One of Carolina’s starting defensive ends, Brian Burns, has impressed fans and coaches with his second-year improvement, acting as a rare cause for excitement for this unit. At training camp, the most prominent battle for the defensive line features a veteran and a rookie to decide who will start on the opposite side of Burns.
Stephen Weatherly
Weatherly (6-foot-5, 265 pounds) is a five-year veteran in the NFL, formerly playing with the Minnesota Vikings from 2016 to 2019. This offseason, he signed a two-year deal with Carolina worth about $12.5 million, adding another unfamiliar face to a team filled with the most new players in the league. Weatherly didn’t stay unknown for long, though, impressing fans with his many quirks and high praise for teammates like Burns, who compared him to Danielle Hunter.
After being picked in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL draft, Weatherly has surpassed expectations, growing into a reliable defensive end off the bench for Minnesota. In his four seasons with the Vikings, Weatherly only totaled 67 tackles, 17 quarterback hits, and six sacks, but he was renowned for his ability to thwart the rushing game, something Carolina has struggled with in recent years.
Weatherly is counting on increased playing time to prove his worth to the Panthers, while the front office hopes he will be worth the money. For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus projects that Weatherly will edge out Gross-Matos for the starting job, at least to start off the season. Especially in a year without a preseason and with such a young offense, it makes sense to rely on Weatherly’s experience and knowledge to guide the team into a new era.
Yetur Gross-Matos
Gross-Matos (6-foot-5, 265 pounds) was selected by the Panthers with the 34th overall pick in the 2020 draft. He might be the most underrated member of this all-defense draft class. Head coach Matt Rhule and general manager Marty Hurney told the team website on draft day that they didn’t think Gross-Matos would fall out of the first round, adding that they were “really ecstatic” about him.
Their excitement is justified. In three years at Penn State, Gross-Matos put up an impressive 111 tackles and 18.5 sacks, adding two forced fumbles and fumble recoveries. Scouts noted his tremendous raw strength and power, noting that while he may need development, the ceiling for Gross-Matos is extremely high if placed in a system with the right veteran presences.
These traits could come together for the second-round draft pick to earn a starting spot on the roster at some point this season, with David Newton of ESPN even reporting that Gross-Matos lined up with the starters in the Panthers’ televised practice at Bank of America Stadium on Wednesday.
Projected winner: Stephen Weatherly
Although Gross-Matos has more promise in the long run, we predict that the team will rely on Weatherly to kick things off in 2020. The five-year veteran finally gets his chance to shine with Carolina after not seeing much of the field in Minnesota, so expect him to take advantage of the opportunity. Assuming Weatherly wins the battle, he’ll combine his talents with second-year edge Brian Burns, defensive tackle Kawann Short, and rookie first-round pick Derrick Brown as the startres for a totally remade defensive line unit. But whichever way it goes, the defensive line should be a bright spot for an unproven Carolina defense this year.
