Team news: Carolina Panthers

Panthers have ruled three players out for Sunday:
Damien Lewis (elbow), Shy Tuttle (foot), Lonnie Johnson (hip).

Three other players questionable: Robert Hunt (hip), Diontae Johnson (groin), A'Shawn Robinson (knee).

Related Players: Jonathan Mingo, Xavier Legette

This would be a bummer if Johnson missed after the offense was absolutely humming while he compiled an 8-122-1 stat line in Week 3. It'd be an even bigger blow to the offense as a whole after they just lost WR Adam Thielen. If Johnson is a go, consider him a WR2 but if he misses this passing attack may end up being one to avoid altogether.

The Panthers will be without one of their key offensive players for at least four weeks.

Carolina is placing Adam Thielen on injured reserve after he suffered a hamstring injury during Sunday’s victory over the Raiders, according to multiple reports.

Related players: Diontae Johnson, Xavier Legette, Jonathan Mingo, David Moore, Chuba Hubbard

Thielen sustained the injury while catching a 31-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. Thielen is expected to return to the field at some point in 2024, the story said. The rookie Legette and Mingo, along with Moore, all move up the depth chart. Legette had two catches for 42 yards and Mingo caught three for 18 in Week 3. Both players have six total catches this season. Look for Hubbard to likely remain heavily involved in the passing game, too.

There wasn’t much suspense about who will be starting at quarterback for the Panthers in Week 4, but head coach Dave Canales made an announcement at his Monday press conference anyway.

“Andy Dalton is our quarterback. He gives us the best chance to win,” Canales said. “That’s the approach as we get ready for the Bengals.”

Related players: Bryce Young

Andy Dalton was 26-of-37 for 319 yards and three touchdowns in Carolina’s 36-22 win over the Raiders in Las Vegas. That was a huge leap up from what the Panthers did on offense with Young running the offense in back-to-back losses to open the season. Even better, fantasy owners of Chuba Hubbard and Diontea Johnson saw signs of life from those players.

Per Tom Pelissero of NFL Media, the Panthers are benching Bryce Young to start Andy Dalton — beginning with this week’s matchup against the Raiders.

As the story said, after the Week 2 loss HC Dave Canales said, "Bryce is our quarterback." But as the story added, Young has looked overmatched so far this season after struggling to a 2-14 mark last year. Young has completed just 55.4 percent of his throws for 245 yards with three interceptions. His passer rating is 44.1 and he’s averaging just 4.4 yards per attempt. As for Dalton, he's 36 and likely won't be considered a must-acquire fantasy target. But, he will have some weapons to work with in Diontae Johsnon, Adam Thielen and Xavier Legette, so he may have some value in deeper superflex leagues.

A bit of a shocker: Panthers are releasing WR Terrace Marshall.

Related players: Diontae Johnson, Adam Thielen, Xavier Legette, Jonathan Mingo

Some who follow the team thought Marshall was having a good camp and potentially turning things around for himself. But, the Panthers paid a lot of attention to the WR position the last couple of years. They traded for Johnson this spring after signing Thielen the previous year. Also this spring, they drafted Legette at the end of the first round, after selecting Mingo the previous season, that left Marshall buried down the depth chart.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the Panthers will leave Jonathon Brooks on the non-football injury list for the start of the regular season. That will remove him from the active roster and will leave him ineligible to play in the first four games of the regular season.

Related players: Miles Sanders, Chuba Hubbard, Mike Boone, Raheem Blackshear, Jaden Shirden

Brooks tore his ACL during his final season at Texas, but the Panthers still selected him in the second round in April, the story said. The story added the team was hoping to have Brooks back by Week 3 or 4, but are taking it slow with him. Hubbard should be the guy to own in terms of fantasy with Sanders also getting his work. Brooks is still expected to be back, and is very likely to take over the RB1 role at some point soon after his return.

It’s a “mild calf injury” for Jaguars WR Christian Kirk, per Doug Pederson. He won’t practice vs Bucs today.

Related Players: Gabe Davis, Brian Thomas Jr., Parker Washington

Doesn't seem like anything too serious but also seems like Kirk won't be practicing for the rest of the week. We'll keep an eye on the situation, but no reason to push Kirk down your draft boards quite yet.

Via Joe Person of TheAthletic.com, first-round rookie receiver Xavier Legette is back on the field after missing a few practices with a foot injury.

Related players: Diontae Johnson, Adam Thielen

The Panthers traded up to pick Legette with the 32nd selection in the first round. He's expected to slide into the WR3 role, assuming he can get back up to speed, behind Johnson and Thielen.

Panthers WR Xavier Legette left practice early Sunday with an apparent lower-leg injury.

As said by head coach Dave Canales, Legette was evaluated as a precautionary measure, and X-rays came back negative. Legette will undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury. This is already multiple injuries Legette has dealt with this offseason. He also had a hamstring issue in June. Legette can currently be had for a bargain in drafts.

Panthers rookie running back Jonathon Brooks (knee) will hopefully be ready to play by Week 3 or 4.

That’s at least the hope from head coach Dave Canales. Brooks is still recovering from
His torn ACL suffered last year while at Texas. The Panthers selected Brooks in the second round of the draft. While Brooks is out, Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders will handle rushing duties but Brooks should eventually take center stage once he is healthy. We currently have Brooks as a flex option heading into drafts. The Panthers open the season September 8 at New Orleans.