Last week, the Carolina Panthers defense suffered quite a blow when they lost outside linebacker Nic Scourton to a season-ending ACL tear. The injury occurred in the very first session of training camp, and has left a hole off the edge.
In Scourton's absence, the Panthers need several other players to step up—including fellow second-year edge rusher Princely Umanmielen.
On that score, Umanmielen has one very big fan—free agent-pickup Jaelan Phillips. When speaking with reporters after Tuesday's practice, Phillips shared some very high praise for Umanmielen.
"He's probably the best pass rusher on our team," Phillips stated. "I think that he is extremely naturally gifted. And I think that as he continues to develop, he can be a very special player.
"I think that he already has crazy attributes, and he's definitely learning, he's young. So I'm excited to watch him grow."
It's a nice sentiment, but the Panthers have to hope that their actual best pass rusher is Phillips—because they're paying him $30 million a yeay.
Anyway—as a rookie, Umanmielen only posted 1.5 sacks and four quarterback hits. While those numbers are underwhelming at first glance, the 2025 third-round pick was only on the field for about 22 percent of the defense's snaps.
Umanmielen will certainly see a bigger role this year, and he did flash some real potential last preseason. If he can beat out Patrick Jones II for the starting spot opposite Phillips, it will be a good sign for how his 2026 campaign is going to go.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers could have a hidden weapon off the edge in 2026
