4 Carolina Panthers players with potential to dominate in 2024
By Dean Jones
Which Carolina Panthers players have the potential to become dominant forces under new head coach Dave Canales in 2024?
After a two-win season that brought little for the fanbase to cheer, the only way is up for the Carolina Panthers. It cannot get much worse, so Dave Canales doesn't have a high bar in pursuit of improving the team's fortunes next season.
The head coach is harboring big ambitions for the franchise despite things not looking too promising overall. Canales wants to make the football operation more fundamentally sound. After that, he believes everything else should take care of itself en route to what he believes will be a campaign that surprises people.
Fans are growing in optimism following an eventful offseason that saw many established stars depart. Talk is cheap after so much underachievement during David Tepper's ownership. Canales will demand a collective effort and rely on his top-level performers to reach or even far exceed their high expectations.
With this in mind, here are four Panthers players with the potential to dominate in 2024.
Robert Hunt - Carolina Panthers OL
The Carolina Panthers wasted no time in prioritizing the acquisition of Robert Hunt once the legal tampering period began. Giving quarterback Bryce Young more time in the pocket was critical after such a woeful rookie campaign. Dan Morgan spared no expense to prise the interior offensive lineman from the Miami Dolphins to kick off a dramatic free agency for the new general manager.
Hunt is an accomplished pass protector who also brings a mean streak on running-downs. He is a tone-setter and a difference-maker in equal measure - someone who makes everyone around them better. This is exactly what the Panthers were looking for after injuries and poor depth saw their protection regress considerably.
If Hunt stays clear of injury, this could be the most important free-agent signing the Panthers have made in some time.