Six undrafted rookies with clear paths toward making Carolina Panthers’ roster in 2024

The Carolina Panthers are in the middle of a rebuild of sorts. And while veteran free agency and the NFL Draft provided a strong group of reinforcements — in theory — some of the gems in undrafted free agency shouldn’t be overlooked as potential contributors.

The Panthers have 16 undrafted rookies on their roster. That group, while overlooked by all 32 teams in the draft, features some notable names from the pre-draft process. Those players took part in last week’s rookie minicamp where they — like the team’s seven draft picks — got their first collective glimpse of the NFL up close.

While no team wants to play a bunch of undrafted rookies, the reality for the Panthers is that they aren’t in a position to ignore talented players, even those who have been previously overlooked by the draft process. So, as general manager Dan Morgan and head coach Dave Canales look to build their first roster together, it would serve them well to pay attention to the underdogs on the depth chart this summer.

Here are six undrafted free agents who to appear to have a leg up in earning jobs this summer for various reasons:

WR Jalen Coker

Coker comes to Carolina with considerable buzz for an undrafted free agent. The rookie was a standout at Holy Cross during his FCS college career — with 31 receiving touchdowns and 2,715 receiving yards — and he shined at the East-West Shrine Game in January. The 6-foot-1, 208-pound playmaker enters a wideout room that is in heavy transition, as Adam Thielen is really the only returning receiver that is guaranteed a major role in 2024.

Coker has a shot of sneaking onto the roster if he can out-duel former second-round pick, Terrace Marshall, for a spot. Coker needs to thrive on special teams in the preseason to stick around.

WR Sam Pinckney

Like Coker, Pinckney enters a position room in flux. The 6-4, 220-pound receiver has intriguing size and his production during his two years at Coastal Carolina (143 catches for 2,023 yards and 11 touchdowns) was impressive.

The Greenwood, S.C., native will need to best Coker and Marshall on special teams to carve out a role early in his NFL career. Pinckney’s size might give him an edge if the Panthers are looking for a red-zone package weapon who can develop into a heavier role player over time.

C Andrew Raym

The center position has been a widely debated topic throughout the offseason. While the Panthers plan to move former starting right guard Austin Corbett to the middle of the line to replace Bradley Bozeman, there is a concern from those outside of the organization that the position is somewhat being thrown together.

The Panthers are lacking a proven, natural center as of now, and Raym could, in theory, become that guy if he earns a job this summer. He will need to beat out the likes of Cade Mays, Chandler Zavala and Nash Jensen to stick to the 53-man roster.

DE Popo Aumavae

The Panthers are light on defensive line depth entering the offseason program. While the team signed A’Shawn Robinson in free agency and selected Jaden Crumedy in the sixth round of April’s draft, the group still has pretty limited numbers.

Robinson, Derrick Brown, Shy Tuttle, LaBryan Ray and Nick Thurman appear to be the top five players in the trenches. But Crumedy, Aumavae and Ulumoo Ale will compete for a potential sixth spot. Aumavae appeared to be a standout of the rookie minicamp during drills.

QB Jack Plummer

Plummer’s status as the third quarterback on the roster has him in a battle against himself for the moment. While Canales has mentioned on multiple occasions that he is interested in having a veteran at the No. 3 spot, the Panthers — to this point — haven’t added that experienced arm to the fold. It’s on Plummer to switch up Canales’ plans by proving he has staying power.

While rookie minicamp probably didn’t go as well as Plummer had hoped, he wasn’t among the quick cuts from the weekend of workouts. Plummer is an older rookie — nearly two years old than starter, Bryce Young — so he might be able to bring some youthful wisdom to the fold.

Plummer needs to be lights out the rest of the way, but he has a shot to stick if the Panthers decide to keep three quarterbacks as part of the roster or practice squad.

K Harrison Mevis

The Panthers want to test starting kicker Eddy Piñeiro this summer. While Piñeiro is signed through this coming season, he is only guaranteed $150,000 entering the final year of his deal. The Panthers could easily stomach that lost cost if they were to cut him in favor of Mevis, who was signed as an undrafted free agent last week.

Piñeiro has dealt with injuries in each of the past two summers and he failed to finish last season due to an ailment. The Panthers should try to keep Piñeiro fresh this summer, and if Mevis outperforms him, they should go with the cheaper, younger option at kicker, in theory.