Jalen Coker, Corey Thornton, Demani Richardson, and… Who else?
That’s what Carolina Panthers fans are asking general manager Dan Morgan, whose low-block bank shot has been finding prospects who were overlooked, believing in their abilities, and signing them to undrafted free-agent contracts where they blossom into gems.
The problem is, we’re a fortnight from Week 1, and fans seemingly don't have a UDFA gem for this 2026 rookie class.
Albert Reese IV has made a strong case to make Carolina Panthers' 53-man roster
I’m here to tell you that we are all wrong. We just haven’t noticed him, which I find funny because he's hard to miss.
At 6-foot-7 and 330 pounds, Albert Reese IV is a supreme physical force. An immovable mountain protecting the right side of the offensive line at tackle.
The Canadian-born protector attended Mississippi State for five years, playing both tackle spots and right guard. He was up and down as a run blocker and in pass pro, leading to him slipping under the league's radar so much so that he wasn’t even listed in some of the popular mock draft sites' databases.
As a matter of fact, if you type in “Albert Reese IV scouting profile” into Google, four of the five top results will be about New York Giants rookie linebacker Arvell Reese.
So the question isn’t how Morgan found this guy, but more what did he see?
If we are going off the tape from the first three preseason games, Morgan saw a brick wall.
As a run blocker, Reese is a people mover. If he gets his hands on you in the run game with his frame, the lineman is taking you wherever he wants. Just as important, if his hands grace your pads in pass pro, you will be stationary for the foreseeable future.
Albert Reese IV could be the Carolina Panthers' next undrafted steal
I am not being hyperbolic when I say this, but Reese may have the best anchor of any offensive tackle on this team.
Pro Football Focus named Reese as their 11th highest-graded rookie after preseason Week 2, with an 86.5 overall grade and a 92.6 run blocking grade with only two hurries allowed on 104 pass sets.
The only issue I've seen is what I already wrote:
“If he gets his hand on you."
Reese, being the towering figure he is, has his strengths but also his biological weaknesses. Being that big of a player, his feet can be much slower than the desired footspeed of a starting offensive tackle.
Going against second- and third-starting players in the preseason, Reese has shown he has enough landmarks and strength to mask his foot speed. I fear it won’t be the same going against some of the premier pass-rushers in the NFL.
So far, Reese has caught my eye after being someone I had no clue existed.
However, climbing Mount Everest without equipment or an instructor may be easier than the climb Reese has to make this roster.
The Panthers have decent offensive tackle depth, despite missing Taylor Moton and Ikem Ekwonu right now. Yet he may already have done enough to stick around on the practice squad and even be elevated for some games.
Swing tackle is one of the most important yet unwhispered positions on offense. We saw the value of that last season with recently retired Yosh Nijman, who stepped in at both tackle spots for Carolina last season and played three quarters in the home playoff game.
I’m not telling you Reese is a long-term replacement for Moton, but what I am telling you is he will hang around longer than initially expected.
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