Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker was able to play in Week 3 after being listed as questionable and they’ll be hoping for the same outcome on Sunday night.
Coker was limited in practice by a quad injury for the second straight day on Friday and the Panthers have slapped another questionable tag on him ahead of their game against the Lions. Coker has also dealt with an ankle injury this season and has 18 catches for 222 yards and two touchdowns on the season.
The Panthers will be without wide receiver Xavier Legette (knee) for the second straight game. They have also ruled out guard Damien Lewis (elbow). Cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson are not on the injury report, but the starters will be missing after landing on injured reserve earlier this week.
Right tackle Monroe Freeling returned to full practice, but is listed as questionable pending final clearance from concussion protocol. Defensive tackles Lee Hunter (foot) and Cam Jackson (knee) are also listed as questionable.
Panthers Clips
Wide receiver Jalen Coker was back on the practice field for the Panthers on Thursday.
Coker was listed as a limited participant with the quad injury he suffered in Week 3. Coker was called questionable to play earlier in the week and the Panthers will issue an official injury designation on Friday.
That will also be the next update on how right tackle Monroe Freeling is progressing through the concussion protocol. Freeling was a limited participant on Thursday and will need to be cleared in order to face the Lions on Sunday night.
Tight end Darren Waller and running back Chuba Hubbard also returned to action after resting on Wednesday.
Wide receiver Xavier Legette (knee) and guard Damien Lewis (elbow) remained out of practice while defensive tackle Lee Hunter (foot) was added to the report as a limited participant.
The Panthers placed their starting cornerbacks on injured reserve on Wednesday, but there was a positive development for quarterback Bryce Young later in the day.
Young was checked out by trainers during last Sunday’s loss to the Browns and he was sore enough to go for further tests the day after the game, but Wednesday’s injury report shows that he was listed as a full participant in practice. Young’s knee is given as the reason why he’s on the report.
That listing was an estimation because the Panthers only held a walkthrough. Had there been an actual practice, a number of players would have sat out.
Wide receivers Jalen Coker (quad) and Xavier Legette (knee) headed up a group that also included tight end Darren Waller (toe, rest), running back Chuba Hubbard (not injury related), right tackle Monroe Freeling (concussion), left guard Damien Lewis (elbow), and linebacker Princely Umanmielen (ankle). Safety Nick Scott (rib) and linebacker Devin Lloyd (calf) joined Young as full participants.
The Panthers will not have their top two cornerbacks for the next month.
Carolina has placed Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson on injured reserve, the team announced on Wednesday.
Horn is dealing with a quad injury while Jackson has a groin injury.
As corresponding moves, the team has signed receiver David Moore and running back Tre Tyus to the 53-man roster from the club’s practice squad.
Additionally, Carolina has signed cornerback Robert Rockell to its practice squad.
After losing to the Browns last week, the Panthers will be at home to face the Lions on Sunday night in Week 4.
The Panthers are set to be without guard Damien Lewis for a little bit, so they added some offensive line depth on Tuesday.
They announced that they have signed guard Torricelli Simpkins off of their practice squad. Simpkins signed with Carolina ahead of the regular season.
Simpkins played in 15 games and started twice for the Saints last season.
The Panthers waived linebacker Maema Njongmeta in a corresponding move. He had three tackles and a forced fumble in Sunday’s loss to the Browns.
Linebacker Cam Gill and offensive lineman Isaia Glass signed to the practice squad while guard Chandler Zavala was released from that roster to wrap up the day’s moves.
The Panthers will not have one of their starting offensive linemen for at least Sunday’s game.
Per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, left guard Damien Lewis will be sidelined for a few weeks with a UCL injury in his elbow.
But there’s a chance Lewis will miss just one game, as the Panthers have a bye in Week 5.
Head coach Dave Canales mentioned in his Monday press conference that the team was doing imaging on Lewis’ injury and the bye would be taken into consideration when it comes to a return-to-play timeline.
Lewis has been with the Panthers since 2024, having signed a four-year contract with the club.
Panthers quarterback Bryce Young never came out of Sunday’s loss to the Browns, but he was moving gingerly after a sack in the first half and he’ll be going for some tests to kick off this week.
Head coach Dave Canales didn’t specify what body part Young injured when he got kicked during the game and said that he thinks the quarterback will be fine for their Week 4 trip to Detroit, but that he’ll get imaging done to make sure there’s nothing more going on.
“He was sore a little bit,” Canales said. “I think he took a cleat, I can’t remember exactly where. There was some soreness, he was able to battle through it. Was able to finish. We’re looking at him too, we’re making sure everything’s right.”
Canales confirmed that the Panthers are set to be without cornerback Jaycee Horn for an indefinite period of time due to a quad injury, so they’ll be hoping that everything with Young comes back with positive news.
The Panthers got good news about wide receiver Jalen Coker’s quad injury, but cornerback Jaycee Horn did not fare as well.
Horn also hurt his quad during Carolina’s 21-18 loss to the Browns and multiple reports on Monday say that he has suffered a significant injury. It is believed to be a tear and Horn could be out for the rest of the season depending on what he hears as he solicits more opinions about the injury.
Horn signed a four-year extension with the team this offseason, so his future with the club is secure even if he can’t make it back on the field before the end of the season. He had six tackles and two pass breakups in his three appearances this year.
Mike Jackson, Akayleb Evans and rookie Will Lee also saw time at corner on Sunday.
Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker was able to play on Sunday after being listed as questionable due to an ankle injury, but a different injury brought his day to an early end.
Coker left the 21-18 loss to the Browns in the third quarter after injuring his quad. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Coker has a relatively minor strain and that he is considered questionable to play against the Lions on Sunday night in Week 4 as a result.
Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn also suffered a quad injury on Sunday and head coach Dave Canales said after the game that he still needs to be evaluated.
Coker had two catches for 18 yards on Sunday. He has 18 catches for 222 yards and two touchdowns on the season.
Browns fans booed Deshaun Watson in the second half of a preseason game against the Bills. On Sunday, they cheered him.
Watson threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to tight end Harold Fannin Jr. with 1:48 left to lift the Browns to a 21-18 upset of the Panthers. He finished with 144 yards and two touchdowns, along with 45 yards rushing on 11 carries.
Winning makes everyone happy.
“It was great. It was amazing. I just wanted to finish the job for them,” Watson said of the fans, via Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN. “There was one moment where I got a little teary-eyed, feeling that energy. I’ve put in so much work to get here, to be in this moment here and to be able to show I can finish these drives, and finish these games to get W’s for this city and this organization.
“This is what all the hard work, belief, prayers, everything that I have put myself through the last 22 months. To be able to stand in front of the crowd on that field and to finish the job. I want to keep improving and keep trying to get better each and every day, each week and we have a big one on Thursday [against the Steelers].”
After the home fans booed him last month, Watson made it worse by calling it “disrespectful” and “personal.” He apologized a few days later, saying his “emotions got the best of me.”
The only way to win them over was to play well and win, and Watson has done both.
The Browns are tied for first place with the other three teams in the division at 2-1, and Watson has completed 63.8 percent of his passes for 587 yards with five touchdowns and one interception. He also has run for 105 yards.
He is the first Browns quarterback since Baker Mayfield in Weeks 14 and 15 of 2018 to lead game-winning touchdown drives in the fourth quarter of consecutive games, according to ESPN Research.
“We continued to feed off that energy of the crowd, and we wanted to make a special play,” Watson said. “I told the guys in the huddle, ‘Man, just [believe] in me and I’m going to use my legs.’ Whenever that play comes up, make that play, and Harold did.”
