Who is on the Carolina Panthers’ second-tier Mount Rushmore?

Ryan Kalil – Former Carolina Panthers C

There are few centers who’ve ever stepped onto the gridiron that boast the sort of credentials Ryan Kalil has to show from his career. The former Carolina Panthers lineman was a brute force on the interior and things just haven’t been the same at the position since he decided to finally call it a day.

Kalil did try and make a comeback with the New York Jets in 2019. But he was a shell of his former self.

However, this should not detract from what was a phenomenal 12-year stint with the Panthers that also came with two All-Pro selections and five Pro Bowl appearances.

Not only did Kalil produce the goods when it mattered most on the field. But the respect he commanded from his teammates was another strong indicator of the esteem to which he was held.

One cannot forget the player crying all alone following a loss during an episode of All or Nothing before being greeted by then-head coach Ron Rivera, so one would be hard-pressed to find someone who cared more.

Things might not have gone according to plan when the Panthers signed his brother Matt Kalil to a bumper deal that turned out to be one of the worst contracts ever given out by the team. But getting this much production from a second-round pick was something beyond Carolina’s wildest dreams when they took Kalil in the 2007 NFL Draft.