4 Panthers players that must step up after defensive departures

Yetur Gross-Matos – Carolina Panthers DL

With Haason Reddick and Morgan Fox no longer around, the Carolina Panthers need to find someone that can generate pressure anywhere across the line of scrimmage. These moves could indicate a supreme amount of confidence in Yetur Gross-Matos, a former second-round pick out of Penn State who made his presence felt as the season went on in 2021.

Gross-Matos is an explosive individual that spent some successful time working as a three-technique on the interior. Of course, he can also work the edge that the Panthers will need in a big way after deciding not to match Reddick’s offer from the Philadelphia Eagles.

This provided a great amount of hope that Gross-Matos can truly come of age in Year 3 of his professional career. Something that will be a necessity if Brian Burns ends up going to the Houston Texans as part of their trade to potentially acquire Deshaun Watson.

With six sacks, 52 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hits, and 19 pressures throughout his career so far, it’s hard to look at Gross-Matos and not suggest he couldn’t become a prominent figure on and off the field at an important stage of his career.

These are big shoes to fill, obviously. But it is a challenge Gross-Matos is sure to relish and who knows, this could see the player finally emerge as a productive NFL starter at just the right time for Carolina.