The Carolina Panthers recently signed 10 undrafted rookie free agents. There’s no cap on how many UDFAs teams can sign in a given year, and it’s not uncommon for somewhere north of 400 of them to dot NFL rosters. While this is cold for me to say about guys chasing their NFL dreams, the vast majority of them are “camp bodies” to help teams get through training camp and the preseason.
The fortunate ones will make a practice squad this year. Only the chosen few will make a 53-man roster and see the field
in 2026.
Here’s what you need to know about the four offensive UDFAs the Panthers signed this year.
QB Haynes King, Georgia Tech
2025 stats: 2,951 passing yards, 14 TD, 6 INT, 69.8% completion; 953 rushing yards, 15 TDs
While it’s rare for undrafted free agent quarterbacks to stick in the NFL, Haynes King could be the exception. At 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds, King is a true dual-threat quarterback. With his size and 4.46 40-yard dash time he draws some comparisons to the immortal Taysom Hill. His Relative Athletic Score of 9.65 places him among the most elite quarterback prospects when it comes to pure athleticism, especially in regards to his speed.
King began his career with Texas A&M and spent three years with the Aggies. He mostly watched from the sidelines at A&M and attempted just 41 passes over the course of those three seasons. In 2023 he transferred to Georgia Tech and blossomed. He ultimately spent three more seasons at Georgia Tech threw for 7,907 yards and 55 touchdowns, completing 67.6% of his pass attempts.
His outstanding 2025 season led to him being named the ACC Player of the Year and the conference’s Offensive Player of the Year. His outstanding college career came to an end with a loss as No. 22 Georgia Tech fell to No. 12 BYU in the Pop Tarts Bowl, a fact I was contractually obligated to mention as a proud BYU graduate.
Carolina was smart to kick the tires on King. If I was an NFL general manager I would always have a mobile Taysom Hill-like backup quarterback who could be deployed a couple of times a game in the right down and distance. (Yes, Taysom is also a BYU product, but I promise I’m being objective here.) Forcing opposing defenses to go through the additional game planning to install packages to counter designed QB runs or short passes is a strategic advantage in and of itself.
The more I write about Haynes King, the more excited I get about his potential to stick in Carolina.
I’m not usually bullish on UDFA quarterbacks, but I am on this one.
WR Kobe Prentice, Baylor
2025 stats: 11 games, 26 reception, 380 yards, 6 TDs
While most UDFA receivers struggle to get any semblance of a connection with their new NFL quarterbacks, Kobe Prentice might not have that problem. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound speedster played for Alabama from 2022-2024, meaning he was catching passes from Panthers quarterback Bryce Young during Prentice’s freshman season. And the two had a good connection with Prentice reeling in 31 receptions for 337 yards and two touchdowns in his first year in Tuscaloosa.
But despite his promising freshman campaign, Prentice’s college career stalled on a very talented Alabama squad. As a sophomore he had 18 receptions for 341 yards and two scores then during his 2024 junior season he went for just 11 receptions, 129 yards, and one TD.
Last year he transferred to Baylor and in 11 games reeled in 26 receptions for a career-high 380 yards with an impressive six touchdowns.
While Prentice ran a swift 4.37 40-yard dash, the rest of his 5.76 Relative Athletic Score is pretty generic. He’s small for an NFL receiver and his agility graded as “poor” in his RAS profile.
Kobe Prentice will probably be a long shot to make even the practice squad this year, but the Panthers brought him for a reason.
OT Isaia Glass, Vanderbilt
2025 stats: 13 games, 13 starts
Glass did his version of couch surfing in college after spending three years at Arizona State followed by a season at Oklahoma State, then a graduate transfer 2025 campaign at Vanderbilt.
He started 15 games at Arizona State from 2021-23 playing mostly left tackle. At Oklahoma State in 2024 he appeared in 12 games with eight starts while showing off his versatility by playing 347 snaps at left tackle and 309 snaps at right tackle, giving up just two sacks. This past season he started all of Vanderbilt’s 13 games.
His 2.76 Relative Athletic Score leaves a lot to be desired, especially with the speed coming off the edge he’ll need to deal with in the NFL. But his positional versatility could make up for some of the areas he’s lacking as the Panthers need depth across the offensive line.
OT Albert Reese, Mississippi State
2025 stats: 9 games, 9 starts
Albert Reese can be summarized in one word: Massive.
The Mississippi State product is a massive 6-foot-7 and 330 pounds. And he has something else going for him that makes NFL talent evaluators drool, and that’s his 34 7/8” arm length. With a good enough 6.99 Relative Athletic Score, which is inflated a bit because of his enormous size, he measured “good” on his explosion grade, “okay” on his speed grade, and a concerning “poor” with his agility.
The Canada native had a solid career at Mississippi State, appearing in 48 games with 22 starts. During his 2024 junior season he started all 12 games with 10 at right tackle and two at right guard. This past 2025 season he started all nine games in which he played and spent time at both tackle positions and at guard.
His size and lack of agility might make him a better prospect at guard in the NFL, but for now the Panthers list him as a tackle. Sliding inside will probably give Albert Reese his best shot at carving out a professional career.
Given his size and position versatility, Albert Reese could be a good prospect for the practice squad.
