Jalen Coker showed he is more than a Carolina Panthers' feel-good story

Stop me if you heard this before, but another rookie wide receiver flashed for the Carolina Panthers in a blowout loss.

I don’t want to get anyone too excited or oversell what he did on the field. However, Jalen Coker might finally be the undrafted steal Panthers fans get excited about every offseason.

With injuries to Adam Thielen and Xavier Legette, he finally got to see the field at the Chicago Bears. Coker made the most of it by leading the team in receiving yards. It was another heavy defeat and half of his catches were on the last drive of the game, but the former Holy Cross star showed a lot that didn't show up on the stat sheet.

Coker was expected to go in the early Day 3 range of the 2024 NFL Draft before failing to hear his name called. This was surprising. He is an ultra-athlete, so he had to win through very sound route running and footwork. He looked like a savvy veteran at times, using leverage and his size to get defensive backs off balance and out of position.

Carolina Panthers can benefit from Jalen Coker's unique traits

The two big knocks coming out of college were his competition and his lack of physical ability - specifically speed. Coker ran a 4.57-second 40-yard dash - nothing to write home about - especially considering third-round rookie Trevin Wallace clocked in at 4.51 seconds.

Even on tape versus lower-level competition, the wideout wasn't a blazer or a game-speed kind of guy. He was an amazing explosion athlete. He jumped an elite 42.5-inch vertical and a 10.08-inch broad jump, which are elite numbers. This allows Coker to make sharp cuts in and out of breaks and when setting up defenders in a route.

He almost moves like veteran tight end Travis Kelce. Coker is not a sprinter, but he's so smooth and dynamic in short areas. The pass-catcher put that to good use in Week 5.

Coker pulled down all four of his targets, tallying 64 receiving yards. These all came from the slot, which allowed him to use his smoothness and explosiveness to set up defenders who gave him free releases and a three-way go.

His best play was a 31-yard deep out. Coker set up Kyler Gordon with two rocker steps making him stumble and fall, bouncing off a hit from a safety, and running another 15 yards before being forced out.

Coker filled in just fine after Legette went down, and it wasn’t just because of his reliable hands and route running. The first-year pro was able to rumble for 31 yards after the catch. This level of playmaking is something the Panthers would've missed immensely without the South Carolina product in the lineup.

These weren't cheap yards either. Coker had to break multiple tackles to make this happen. He boasted a +19 over-expected in yards after the catch versus Chicago and only had an average separation of 2.3 yards per route.

His long speed may limit him on the outside. But Coker could be a dangerous asset when lining up in the slot. Some fans want Coker to start eating into some of second-year receiver Jonathan Mingo's snaps to see how dynamic this offense can be with Diontae Johnson, Xavier Legette, and the undrafted prospect all on the field at once while Thielen is on injured reserve.

It is too early to make any judgments. But the impact of Coker and Legette so far leaves reasons for long-term encouragement.

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