We are now at the halfway point of the 2026 NFL season, and the Carolina Panthers' biggest roster needs are abundantly clear. Yesterday's 26-21 loss to the Denver Broncos underscored those points—the Panthers need help at cornerback, along their offensive line and some kind of pass-rushing firepower.
However, Carolina is not in a good position to make any major deals. For one thing, they're on a three-game losing streak—and even if they win the NFC South, they are very unlikely to beat whoever they face in the first round of the playoffs.
Plus, the Panthers have almost no salary cap space whatsoever to make a move. So, Tyler Sullivan at CBS Sports sees a big trade as far-fetched.
Sullivan writes:
Carolina has the least amount of cap space in the NFL
at the moment, making any sort of deadline deal of substance far-fetched. Given that they're still in the thick of the division race even at 3-5, it feels like the Panthers may hold firm.
Holding firm is probably the right move, even if the Panthers have major needs on both sides of the line of scrimmage and on the back end of their defense.
Carolina's roster has improved a great deal over the last couple of years, but this team is still pretty far from a serious Super Bowl contender. Therefore, it doesn't make much sense to give up draft capital for any one player, because they're definitely more than one guy away from opening a championship window.
Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Analyst says Panthers making big trade deadline move would be ‘far-fetched’
