Mike Gitkos ranks the Panthers twice in one episode. First the top five on offense, where Bryce Young's three-year trend runs straight into an offensive line missing Ikem Ekwonu and Taylor Moton. Then the top five on defense, where Carolina spent $165 million on two front-seven players and still has the guy who gets double teamed on two out of every three snaps.
My top five Panthers on offense, then my top five on defense, two weeks out from a season that follows the franchise's first division title since 2015. On offense it comes down to projection. Bryce Young went from 11 touchdowns to 15 to 23 in three years and the interceptions never moved. Tetairoa McMillan won Offensive Rookie of the Year with 1,014 yards. Jonathon Brooks is back from two ACL tears. And all of it sits behind a line missing both starting tackles.
On defense it comes down to who they brought in. Jaelan Phillips at four years and $120 million, Devin Lloyd at three and $45 million, Jaycee Horn already one of the highest paid defensive backs in the league. Derrick Brown is still the one nobody blocks with a single body. What Panthers made your top 10? #Panthers #KeepPounding #NFL #CarolinaPanthers #BryceYoung #DerrickBrown
Locked On Panthers Hit — episode transcript
Is this the year that Bryce Young becomes a top quarterback in the NFL?
See, I give that an emphatic yes. He's going to be one of the Panthers' top players on offense and on the team, as long as the offensive line can keep him upright.
See, I think there are three guys that this season rests on when it comes to the offense being able to perform.
Number three is the quarterback, Bryce Young.
He's got to step it up. See, he's trending up from year one, where he only had 11 touchdowns.
Not a good rookie season. Second year, 15 passing touchdowns.
An improvement over year one.
But then you got to see him get more confident, get a little bit of that swag last season.
And he finished the season with 23 touchdowns. So let's do it. Let's hit the 30 marker this season.
But there is a factor that this whole success rests on, and that's the offensive line being able to hold up.
So I have Bryce Young ranked third on the Panthers' list of top offensive players. Because, I mean, we already have a couple offensive linemen down, but the one guy we really cannot afford to lose, and we need the season, Robert Hunt. He's one of the best guards in the game. He's going to keep players from busting up the middle of that line.
That could very much be what makes or breaks the season for the offense.
And then I'm not really concerned about the wide receivers. Again, health is a big factor. Tet, I think he's going to have a real breakout season this year. I really think he's going to bring it all together, and he's really going to show why he was Offensive Rookie of the Year last season.
So, Bryce Young has Tet, he has Coker, Darren Waller. We got a double-headed running back attack. So, let's take that leap.
More touchdown passes.
He's usually good at keeping the ball in his team's hands.
That's the offense. If you're wondering who the other two guys to round out the top five were, both surprise picks.
Number four, Darren Waller, who we just picked up. I think he's going to have a great season for the Panthers and get more usage as the season goes on.
And number five, my dark horse, Jonathon Brooks.
Let's see what happens. Stay healthy.
So, how does a team with a banged-up offensive line win the division, win 10 games or so this upcoming season? The defense, that's how.
Like Bryce Young, our defense has also been trending in the right direction. Two years ago, it was historically bad. Like, possibly the worst defense of all time. They gave up, I don't know if there's another team that gave up more points in the season than the 2024 Carolina Panthers.
Well, 2025 comes along. They're in the middle of the pack. Massive improvement over the year prior. A big reason for that is the number one guy on the list coming back from injury, that's Derrick Brown, man in the middle of the defensive line.
But there's two splash signings that the Panthers picked up that are going to help bring that defense to the higher teens.
Maybe the top 10? Let's not get ahead of ourselves, but the potential's there. You see, they brought in Jaelan Phillips, who I was skeptical about, but after the first preseason game against the Bills starters, I'm a little bit more optimistic. The guy was, he pressured Josh Allen, got a sack on him.
That's two pressures in a matter of 10 plays of game time. I see why his pressure rate was so high with the Eagles, and hopefully it translates to sacks this season. The next big signing, the next big reason, or my number three on the list — I had Jaelan Phillips number four.
Number three, I have Devin Lloyd. Last season, he had 81 tackles, five interceptions.
He was second team All-Pro, and ESPN named him as the 10th best linebacker in the league. He's also the Panthers' highest-ranked player in the top 100 list that they released.
I think it was 27 overall, somewhere around there. But, I mean, if his play from last season translates or improves this year, like, that's game-changing.
Carolina's got playmakers on all levels of the defense. Jaelan Phillips on the defensive line, Derrick Brown on the defensive line, Devin Lloyd in that middle linebacker spot, and then on the back end, they got the cornerstone pieces in Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson. Those guys are locked down, and they're locked in, and you can bet they're going to be locked on, and no Mike Evans to worry about anymore. Sorry, Bucs fans.
You're in for a rude awakening. Sound right? Any surprise players that you think are going to step up this season? I think our safety position is an interesting one to watch. What do you think?
Who do you want to see step it up in 2026 and help lead the team to the playoffs in another division title? Let me know in the comments.
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