The Carolina Panthers may have put forth an admirable effort in their postseason duel with the Los Angeles Rams, but the 34-31 scoreline had the home team on the losing end. To take things from bad to worse, one of their cornerstone players suffered a very concerning injury.
Left tackle Ikem Ekwonu, who has come on strong after some very uneven times in Panthers black and blue, was quickly removed from the game with a knee injury, and the latest update from Dave Canales is not exactly what optimistic fans were hoping to hear.
Canales called the injury "significant" and said the team will have more information about it available later. Even with that vagueness, calling it a significant injury right away is a very concerning sign, especially with someone who is such a vital part of the Carolina infrastructure.
With both Ekwonu and Robert Hunt suffering some bumps and bruises on what was a very emotional night in Charlotte, the Panthers' improved offensive line just lost a major chunk of their overall depth and quality with these injuries.
Panthers LT Ikem Ekwonu suffered "significant" knee injury
Ekwonu ranked as the 37th out of 89 qualified offensive tackles in the NFL this season, with his run blocking drawing explicit praise. The former Top 10 pick is finally starting to look like a franchise tackle just when everyone was starting to shovel dirt on him.
Ekwonu did have his fifth-year option picked up by the club, but this injury might cost him a ton of money. After the Seattle Seahawks extended fellow 2022 draftee Charles Cross for $104 million over four years, Ekwonu may have asked for a salary that approached nine figures.
The severity of Ekwonu's injury may impact the team's plans for 2026. If Ekwonu's ailment forces him to miss some time in the regular season, Carolina may need to spend top dollar on someone who can be a veteran stopgap that fills his starting role until the North Carolina State product returns to full health.
Ekwonu is one of the main reasons that Bryce Young has been able to finally take steps towards putting it all together this season, and he is one of the offensive pieces Carolina could have least afforded to lose for a good chunk of the 2026 season. Fans can only hope the official diagnosis is not as grim as Canales seemingly hinted that it might be.