30 for 30: Counting down the 30 best Carolina Panthers in an anniversary season

The Carolina Panthers are about to start their 30th NFL season. And although it’s easy to forget with the Panthers coming off an NFL-worst 2-15 year, this team was extremely good once upon a time. Actually, it was extremely good several different times.

So with a nod to the great ESPN documentary series, and since I’ve covered every Panthers season since the team’s inception and watched the team’s good, bad and downright ugly seasons, I’m going to do my own miniature “30 for 30” episode here — the best 30 Panthers’ players through the first 30 years.

We will count them down, from No. 30 to No. 1, with numbers 30-16 appearing in this story and numbers 15-1 in Part 2 of this series.

My biggest rule when making this list was this: It doesn’t count what you did somewhere else.

So Julius Peppers’ 10 years with the Panthers do count, but his seven seasons in Green Bay and Chicago don’t. The late Reggie White doesn’t make the top 30 at all. He was a Hall of Famer and one of the best NFL players of all time, but by the time he arrived in Carolina for a single season in 2000 he was a shell of his former self.

It also doesn’t count what you might do. Bryce Young has potential. So far, he’s played one NFL season, but his numbers were terrible. He didn’t come close to making the top 30. Maybe he’ll have a chance for the “40 for 40” list.

Without further ado, let’s start the countdown.

No. 30: J.J. Jansen

Games as a Panther: 243, from 2009 to today.

Best highlights: Jansen’s best highlight is that he has almost no highlights. When a long snapper shows up on the postgame NFL shows, it’s because he sent a snap sailing over somebody’s head. Jansen never does that. He’s one of the steadiest long snappers the league has had.

Notable: Jansen’s 243 games are the most that any player has played in a Panther uniform. He went to the Pro Bowl in 2013.

No. 29: Derrick Brown

Games as a Panther: 66, from 2020 to today.

Best highlights: Brown made his first Pro Bowl last season, when he was the best player on a very bad Carolina team. The former seventh overall pick of the 2020 NFL draft has become a terrific inside force at defensive tackle, which is why the Panthers decided to reward him with a $96-million, four-year contract in April.

Notable: Brown and Jansen are the only two players from the current roster to make the top 30 list. The final 28 all come from past Carolina teams.

No. 28: Jon Beason

Games as a Panther: 72, from 2007 to 2013.

Best highlights: In 2011, the Panthers made Beason the highest-paid middle linebacker in league history. He led the NFL in solo tackles in 2008, when he was first-team AP All-Pro.

Notable: People forget how great Beason was because he was replaced and ultimately overshadowed by Luke Kuechly. Before injuries derailed him, however, Beason started his career with four terrific seasons for Carolina, making the Pro Bowl three times in a row from 2008-2010. However, he only played eight more games for the Panthers after signing that big contract due to a series of injuries.

No. 27: Steve Beuerlein

Games as a Panther: 59, from 1996 to 2000.

Best highlights: Hired as a backup to young quarterback Kerry Collins, Beuerlein proved more than capable when inserted into the starting lineup and went 3-1 as a starter during Carolina’s first playoff season in 1996. As the full-time QB starter in 1999, Beuerlein set a Panthers record that still stands with 36 touchdown passes in a single season, led the NFL with 4,436 passing yards and made the Pro Bowl.

Notable: Wesley Walls, who played with numerous QBs in the NFL including Joe Montana and Brett Favre, said no one he played with threw a more accurate ball than Beuerlein. Beuerlein also ran the slowest and most famous QB draw in team history to win a game at Green Bay.

No. 26: DJ Moore

Games as a Panther: 80, from 2018 to 2022.

Best highlights: Moore was the best wide receiver for a number of recently bad Carolina teams and posted three straight 1,000-yard years as a Panther from 2019-21. He was always a threat running the ball after a catch. After one of his best plays, to score a touchdown at Atlanta in 2022 to tie the game, he took off his helmet and cost the team 15 yards on what ultimately became a missed extra point.

Notable: Moore got traded to Chicago in 2023 when the Panthers decided to move up from No. 9 to No. 1 in the NFL Draft, where they then skipped over C.J. Stroud to take Alabama quarterback Bryce Young. This trade is controversial for many reasons, not the least of which is that Moore immediately had his best season, with the Bears in 2023.

No. 25: Dan Morgan

Games as a Panther: 59, from 2001 to 2007.

Best highlights: Morgan was Kuechly before Kuechly, only to have a series of concussions short-circuit his career. He made the Pro Bowl in 2004 as a linebacker and often seemed like he was the only Panther tackling anybody in the 2003 Super Bowl (when he had an astounding 25 tackles against New England).

Notable: The Panthers chose Morgan No. 11 overall in the 2001 draft, which was the best in team history and also netted the team future Pro Bowlers Steve Smith in the third round and Kris Jenkins in the second round. In January, Morgan became the Panthers’ general manager.

No. 24: Lamar Lathon

Games as a Panther: 48, from 1995 to 1998.

Best highlights: A building block of the first Carolina defenses, Lathon had 13.5 sacks in 1996 and teamed with Kevin Greene to form the Panthers’ “Salt and Pepper” pass rushing combo — the best duo Carolina had coming off the edge. Lathon also knocked Dallas star wide receiver Michael Irvin out of Carolina’s first-ever playoff game, legally, with a hard tackle.

Notable: My choice of Lathon over Brian Burns (who doesn’t make this list) as an edge rusher might be controversial, but for my money Lathon was one of the half-dozen most athletic players the Panthers have employed.

Oh, you want to know the other five people on my “Top Panther Athletes” of all time? Give me Peppers, Cam Newton, Christian McCaffrey, Steve Smith and Michael Bates.

No. 23: Chris Gamble

Games as a Panther: 123, from 2004 to 2012.

Best highlights: In terms of interceptions, Gamble was the best the Panthers have had. The cornerback came up with 27 picks in a nine-year NFL career, all with Carolina, and that still leads the Panthers’ all-time list.

Notable: Thirteen of Gamble’s 27 interceptions came in his first two seasons. While never a Pro Bowler, he was a solid starter for most of the 2000s.

No. 22: Kris Jenkins

Games as a Panther: 85, from 2001 to 2007.

Best highlights: Jenkins was an AP All-Pro for the Panthers in both 2002 and 2003. He once blocked a potential game-winning point in Week 2 of the 2003 season, allowing the Panthers to escape with a win against Tampa Bay.

Notable: An absolute unit at 6-foot-4 and 360 pounds with athleticism, Jenkins played defensive tackle as well as anyone has played it for Carolina for a space of several seasons.

No. 21: Charles Johnson

Games as a Panther: 143, from 2007 to 2017.

Best highlights: Johnson, a strong defensive end with a great work ethic, had three double-digit sack seasons for Carolina, with a high of 12.5 in 2012. He also was noted for stripping the ball and had 17 forced fumbles. A Georgia native, he always got excited for the games against Atlanta and once had 3.5 sacks in a single contest vs. the Falcons in 2012.

Notable: Johnson is second all-time on the Panthers’ sack list with 67.0, due to his longevity and durability. Peppers leads that list with 97.0 as a Panther.

No. 20: Mike Minter

Games as a Panther: 148, from 1997 to 2006.

Best highlights: A hard-hitting safety, Minter was also a fine open-field runner after an interception. He returned four of his 17 career interceptions for TDs, including two pick-sixes during the 2003 Super Bowl season.

Notable: Following his playing career, Minter would become the head football coach at Campbell, where he served for 11 years before resigning in 2023. He also is third on the Panthers’ all-time list in solo tackles (trailing only Thomas Davis and Kuechly) and ranks first in the category among defensive backs.

No. 19: Mike Rucker

Games as a Panther: 139, from 1999 to 2007.

Best highlights: Rucker made the Pro Bowl in 2003, the Panthers’ first Super Bowl season, when he had 12 sacks as a defensive end. Much like Minter, Rucker also played collegiately at Nebraska and was a second-round draft pick who played his entire career with Carolina.

Notable: Rucker ranks third all-time on the Panthers’ QB sack list, with 55.5, behind only Peppers and Charles Johnson. He also is tied for the all-time team lead in safeties, with two.

No. 18: Michael Bates

Games as a Panther: 76, from 1996-2000.

Best highlights: You can’t forget about special-teamers on a “best of” list, and Bates was easily the best kickoff returner the Panthers have had. He played for Carolina for five seasons, from 1996-2000, and made the Pro Bowl all five of those years. He also was an incredible gunner on the punt coverage team and had a career-high kickoff return average of 30.2 yards in 1996.

Notable: Bates had five kickoff-return touchdowns for the Panthers in his career. Kickoffs for the past few years in the NFL have been such a desultory play you could easily take a snack or bathroom break while they were going on. That wasn’t the case when Bates was around (and may not be the case again in 2024, with the NFL’s strange new kickoff rules).

No. 17: DeAngelo Williams

Games as a Panther: 117, from 2006 to 2014.

Best highlights: In 2008, Williams had his best season as a running back, scoring an NFL-high 18 touchdowns and rushing for 1515 yards for a Carolina team that relied heavily on the run. He had two four-TD games that season.

Notable: Williams ranks second on the Panthers’ all-time rushing list, behind only Jonathan Stewart. The two first-round draft picks were nicknamed “Double Trouble” in their heyday.

No. 16: Jonathan Stewart

Games as a Panther: 134, from 2008 to 2017.

Best highlights: Stewart ran for 206 yards in a single game in 2009 against the New York Giants. He was also clutch in big moments, playing in seven playoff games for the Panthers and scoring a total of five postseason rushing touchdowns.

Notable: Stewart is No. 1 on the Panthers’ all-time rushing list, with 7318 yards. While he had only one season over 1,000 rushing yards — 1,133 in 2009 — he had six more of 750-plus and never minded sharing the backfield with high-profile teammates (Williams, Newton and McCaffrey). He’s also a heck of a pianist.

Wednesday, July 10: The top 15 Panthers of all-time, in order, will be revealed in Part 2 of this series.