The Carolina Panthers signed Patrick Jones II during the 2025 free agency period to bolster a pass rushing unit that had been struggling for years. The plan was for him to have the opportunity to take the next step forward as a starter in the NFL while providing a strong veteran presence for the rookies that the Panthers would ultimately select in the next month’s NFL Draft.
Part of that plan held up to contact with the rest of the season. The Panthers drafted Nic Scourton and Princely Umanmielen
with the 51st and 77th overall picks. Jones started four games for the Panthers before requiring a season ending back surgery. His absence allowed Scourton to flourish with an expanded role and develop into a fan favorite and potential star of the 2026 season.
Scourton didn’t even make it out of training camp before suffering his own season ending injury this season. Panthers fans are now largely expecting Jones to step back into his starting role from last season and fill the gap until Scourton’s ultimate return.
This is the obvious answer to the Reacts question we posed last week, but it is not an answer that is guaranteed to satisfy Panthers fans once the season actually starts. Jones only has nine starts and 13 sacks in his five years in the league, including his injury-shortened year with the Panthers.
He had seven sacks in his contract year with the Minnesota Vikings, showing the potential that earned him his free agency contract with Carolina. But that potential is really all we have to work with right now when projecting Jones’ 2026 season.
Until he or Umanmielen can capitalize on their potentials, it may well be that signing Jaelen Phillips and losing Scourton to injury may be another case of one step forward, one step back for defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero’s perennially hamstrung defense.
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