When Trevor Etienne was picked by the Panthers in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL draft, a top priority in the family was to check whether the Panthers play the Jaguars, and Trevor’s brother, fellow running back Travis Etienne.
Not only do they play, but they’ll play in Week One. Trevor Etienne says the family is thrilled.
“As soon as we found out the big news, we already were excited about playing each other this year,” Trevor Etienne said, via Panthers.com. “And then come to find out that it will be Week One. It’s even more exciting, and we all can’t wait.”
The Etienne brothers’ mom, Donnetta Etienne, is already preparing her outfit for the game: She reached out to John Brown, the father of Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and Bears receiver Equanimeous St. Brown, to ask him where he got the split Lions/Bears jersey he wears when his two sons face each other.
“That’s definitely all she’s been talking about so far after finding out like she’s adamant about getting this split jersey done for the game,” Trevor Etienne said. “I think she got in touch with Amon-Ra St. Brown’s father and see how he did it. We were at the NFLPA, and I think she was able to get in touch with him at the premiere, and I think she was able to figure out how he did it and get some pointers and tips on how to handle that, on how to get this split jersey.”
The 26-year-old Travis and the 20-year-old Trevor weren’t close enough in age to be either teammates or opponents at any other level of football, but they’ll be on the same field for the first game of Trevor’s career.
Panthers rookie wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan says he’s benefiting from sharing a meeting room with a couple of veterans during Carolina’s offseason work.
McMillan said veteran wide receivers Hunter Renfrow and Adam Thielen have been teaching him the ins and outs of the NFL from the perspective of two players who have been at it a long time.
“It’s a blessing. I’m the new guy around town — I’ve never played in this league,” McMillan said. “Hunter’s going on, I think, Year 8. I think Adam’s going on Year 13. For them, just to have that knowledge, that wisdom, I’m all ears when they speak. Just being able to find out whatever makes them great, find out whatever can make me better, make me succeed at this level.”
McMillan is also learning a lot from Panthers wide receivers coach Rob Moore, who played 12 NFL seasons and was a first-team All-Pro in 1997.
“He’s been around this game for so long,” McMillan said of Moore. “He’s got so much knowledge, he just wants to pour it into all of us.”
McMillan thinks he’s in the right place to develop as a pro.
Former NFL defensive end Greg Hardy has been arrested for assaulting a family member.
Via TMZ.com, Hardy was taken into custody on Wednesday afternoon. He remains jailed pending a bail hearing.
A sixth-round pick of the Panthers in 2010, Hardy spent five seasons in Carolina before signing with the Cowboys in 2015. He had a career-high 15.0 sacks in 2013, earning a Pro Bowl berth and a spot on the All-Pro second team.
In 2014, he spent all but one game on the Commissioner-Exempt list while domestic violence charges against him were pending. He was suspended four games to start the 2015 season.
After his NFL career ended, he took up various forms of competitive fighting.
As the Panthers continue their offseason program, one of their rookies is currently sidelined due to injury.
Sixth-round receiver Jimmy Horn Jr. is dealing with a hamstring strain, with head coach Dave Canales telling reporters on Tuesday that the rookie is rehabbing.
“He’s in return to play, and then as soon as we feel like he’s ready to get back out there, we’ll bring him back out,” Canales said, via Darin Gantt of the team’s website.
Canales added that Horn gives Carolina “a lot of options” as an offensive weapon.
“There’s some perimeter things we can do with him, the jet sweep game, but then also, like just from his college film, he’s a receiver first and foremost,” Canales said. “He can stretch the field. He can separate, and he’s got a lot of energy and passion he plays with, so he’s going to give himself a great chance to help us.”
Panthers tight end Tommy Tremble is also rehabbing from back surgery, though he’s expected to return for training camp. Canales told reporters the club is taking things one day at a time with him.
“He feels great, but there’s a lot that goes into that, making sure that he’s right, and so we’ll kind of just take it day by day as we go,” Canales said.
Tremble, a third-round pick in 2021, caught we pass for 234 yards with two touchdowns last season.
Former Rams quarterback Bryce Perkins has made the switch to the UFL. In his second season with the Michigan Panthers, Perkins has made the All-UFL team.
His selection comes despite missing three of 10 regular-season games due to an ankle injury — and being benched twice for backup Danny Etling.
Perkins nevertheless was named offensive player of the week three times in 2025. That apparently was enough to overcome finishing fourth in the league in passing yards. Perkins’s 1,342 yards trails Arlington quarterback Luis Perez (2,298 yards), D.C. quarterback Jordan Ta’amu (2,153 yards), and Houston quarterback Jalan McClendon (1,464 yards).
With only eight teams in the league, that’s middle of the pack. Still, Perkins was named the lone All-UFL quarterback.
A former starter at Virginia, Perkins spent three seasons with the Rams. In 2022, he appeared in five regular-season games with one start.
It remains to be seen whether Perkins will be able to play in this weekend’s postseason game at Birmingham.
