When the Panthers signed Darren Waller two weeks ago, the prevailing thought was someone would have to go to make room for a player who
caught six touchdown passes in nine games for the Miami Dolphins in 2025 following a one-year retirement. Ja’Tavion Sanders, with a skill set similar to Waller’s, was viewed as a trade candidate. But for now, Waller and Sanders are still around, as are Tommy Tremble, Mitchell Evans and Feleipe Franks. That’s a lot. Because Waller can line up in the slot, the Panthers can categorize him as a hybrid player. And while Franks is a tight end by title, he made the team because of his special teams ability. Still, it will be interesting to see how the TE room shakes out, especially where Waller is concerned. Waller, who turns 34 the day of the season opener against the Chicago Bears, has been targeted just once in a team drill since arriving.
Hutchinson had a huge day. He made big catch after big catch. I had been critical of Hutchinson in his first few days after the injury to Higgins. He messed up two plays in the preseason game. He had a bad drop in practice earlier this week. He kicked ass in this one for one of his best days of camp. As Ryans noted after practice, he was confident. You could see it. I wonder if some early smack talk from backup Panthers tight end Feleipe Franks helped lock Hutchinson in for the day. Franks said something to Hutchinson before the practice, but Hutchinson shook it off. Then he shook off defenders all practice. His best play was a deep sideline catch from Stroud in the team's situational period. This camp has been the best version of Hutchinson, and today was his best day of camp.
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