The Carolina Panthers caused a stir by trading for defensive lineman TeRah Edwards during the final-cut process. But after some initial skepticism, it's starting to make a lot more sense.
Edwards was an undrafted free agent from the 2025 rookie class after spending five years in college splitting time between Northwestern and Illinois. Spending his first NFL campaign on the Los Angeles Chargers practice squad, there isn’t much out there outside of preseason tape.
I took on the task of watching the tape to see what made general manager Dan Morgan pull the trigger on trading away draft capital for a practice squader with no regular-season stats whatsoever.
TeRah Edwards' relentless motor was clearly key for the Carolina Panthers
At 6-foot-2 and 305 pounds, the first thing that pops off the screen is how well Edwards moves.
The Chargers used him all along the line from 2i to 5-technique. Edwards explodes across the trenches as a pass rusher with the ability to attack upfield in a hurry and even chase down elusive scrambling quarterbacks, forcing them into mistakes or throwaways.
Specifically, in a rep against the Houston Texans, I watched in awe as Edwards aligned between the center and right guard in a 2i and slanted his pass rush all the way to the right tackle after the ball snapped.
He forced the right tackle to overset with how fast he crossed his face during his rush, just for Edwards to leave me further floating in disbelief as he slammed on the brakes, snatching the tackle forward and easily discarding him to force the quarterback into scramble mode.
After gathering my bearings, I had to finish these plays with a clear mind. That’s when I noticed how often Edwards chased down plays that every other defensive lineman gave up on.
TeRah Edwards can fill the void left by Nic Scourton's injury
Then it hit me on the head. This is what the Panthers would miss with Scourton out the entire season with a torn ACL suffered on the first day of training camp.
A versatile rusher with the ability to move along the defensive front and win with athleticism and power. Yet also a player whose motor never stops running.
When the Panthers splashed the cash on edge rusher Jaelan Phillips, I wrote about how his ability to garner early pressure would boost Scourton's numbers as a clean-up rusher, seeing he never gives up on a play. The Panthers staff valued that and most likely saw it the same way I did.
With Scourton out, they are back to having only pocket pushers and loopers, but no one willing to chase across the field. Edwards might give them precisely that with a smooth transition to a new system.
Edwards is a big man with power and wheels. He fills a glaring weakness Carolina has had, adding interior pressure and juice as a pass rusher from the defensive tackle position.
Yet, the most valuable thing he may provide to this team will be his relentless pursuit of the quarterback when everyone else has stopped pursuing.
It’s the same persistence that made Scourton a fan favorite. It's also exactly what Morgan saw when scouring the league for unforeseen assistance.
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