Dan Morgan is running the Carolina Panthers with no emotional attachment to his decision-making process. A recent update regarding the future of veteran linebacker Shaq Thompson magnifies this further if it comes to fruition.
Thompson is one of two Panthers players remaining from their sensational run to Super Bowl 50. He's been a key cog in the team's defense and emerged as a supreme leader within the locker room. Unfortunately for the former first-round pick, this could be the end of the road.
Carolina Panthers look set to part ways with Shaq Thompson
Joe Person from The Athletic revealed that the Panthers and Thompson will probably go their separate ways this offseason. While the Washington product wants to stay, his concerning injury history over the last two seasons took the decision out of his hands.
"The Panthers are bringing back the two oldest players on the team after re-signing QB Andy Dalton and long snapper J.J. Jansen. But the expectation is they’ll move on from LB Shaq Thompson, the second-longest-tenured player behind Jansen. After season-ending leg injuries the past two years, Thompson said in January he’d love to end his career in Charlotte. “But it’s up to them,” he added. “These two injuries … there’s nothing I can do.”"Joe Person
Thompson's influence when on the field was respectable. That hasn't been evident nearly enough over the last two seasons thanks to significant long-term issues in consecutive years.
The second-level enforcer went down with a broken fibula in Week 2 of the 2023 campaign. Thompson got back involved in time for the recently concluded campaign, but he suffered a torn Achilles in Week 4 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
This was a devastating blow to the player and Ejiro Evero's defense. Looking at the typical recovery timeline for this problem and the fact Thompson will be 31 years old when the 2025 campaign begins, the Panthers could use this opportunity to start fresh and get someone younger alongside Josey Jewell and Trevin Wallace.
Nothing has been officially confirmed by the team. Person is pretty clued up about what's going on behind the scenes. If he says this breakup is imminent, it holds a lot of weight.
It would be a disappointing conclusion to Thompson's time in Carolina. He's highly respected in the building and a huge difference-maker in the community. But there is no room for sentiment if the Panthers want to take another step forward and enter the NFC South championship picture in 2025.
While extending Thompson on a one-year, prove-it deal if the money is right cannot be dismissed, the injury concerns are glaring. Achilles tears, in particular, tend to have a detrimental impact on explosiveness and quick-twitch changes in direction — two traits essential for playing the linebacker position.
Thompson doesn't owe the Panthers anything. He gave his absolute all for the organization on and off the field. Injuries are part of the business, but the risk outweighs the reward with the need to avoid additional issues on Carolina's historically bad defensive unit.
If the Panthers decide to let Thompson take his chances elsewhere, it will leave a gaping hole from a leadership standpoint if nothing else. Recruiting well and others coming to the fore will help soften the blow. That's the biggest objective facing Morgan throughout his second offseason at the helm.