Troy Hill's release could signal start of Carolina Panthers' veteran purge

The Carolina Panthers are going nowhere fast in 2024. Dave Canales and Dan Morgan thought strides could be made in Year 1 of their aligned vision for the future. Injuries and a lack of quality across the roster continue to hold this perennial bottom-feeder back.

Carolina is 1-5 for a reason. They aren't good enough to cope with the constant injury issues coming their way. If Morgan gets assurances about his job status from team owner David Tepper, looking to the future seems like a viable option for this franchise.

That has already begun.

In a somewhat surprising move on Friday, the Panthers released veteran cornerback Troy Hill. He was a trusted associate of defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero from their time together on the Los Angeles Rams. However, those in power want to give others a shot and see if improvements can arrive in the secondary.

Carolina Panthers GM Dan Morgan must start planning for the future

This could indicate Dane Jackson is ready to return. It could also mean the Panthers want to get a genuine evaluation of rookie Chau Smith-Wade in a competitive setting, who impressed during the offseason and has been getting more reps on the defensive rotation in recent weeks.

If the Panthers lose a few more games before and after the trade deadline, there could be more departures. Speculation remains rife regarding potential trades for Diontae Johnson and Adam Thielen. Jadeveon Clowney is another who could be made surplus to requirements. There's just no telling for sure.

The Panthers are in a tricky predicament. However, the new regime must start running the football operation with a business-first mindset. Keeping players around just for the sake of it isn't going to do anybody good. Strengthening their assessments of younger players before another crucial offseason in 2025 seems feasible in the circumstances.

There's also a sense Morgan wants to do right with his veteran players. Hill now gets the chance to potentially catch on for a team with legitimate chances of making the postseason. The Panthers are nowhere near that level yet, so others might be looking at the slot presence's departure and want a similar outcome.

Morgan and Canales must find the right balance. They don't want to finish the season 1-15, especially considering Tepper's impulsive nature. But if the billionaire hedge fund manager is willing to be patient, Hill won't be the only experienced figure to depart the ranks in the coming weeks.

It's not ideal. The Panthers have wallowed in prolonged misery since Tepper bought the franchise from Jerry Richardson for a then-record $2.275 billion. Morgan is trying to erase the errors made by previous regimes, but it's going to take time. Taking short-term hits for longer-term prosperity seems like the only way to get out of this ungodly mess. It might not work, but there's no other option.

A fascinating few weeks await the Panthers and its increasingly disillusioned fanbase. They are tired of losing. They are tired of being the league's laughingstock and everyone's get-right game. Their glory days of the mid-2010s seem like a lifetime ago, replaced by a team lacking identity and quality in equal measure.

Whether Hill's departure is the start of a veteran purge remains to be seen. But desperate times typically call for desperate measures.

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