Panthers' consistency starts in the trenches, rests with DC Ejiro Evero

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  Mike KayeOct 29, 2026, 06:00 AM ET

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The Jekyll-and-Hyde-ish nature of the Carolina Panthers' start to the 2026 NFL season has led to more questions than answers through six games. Everyone loves a Slinky until it becomes the best way to describe their team's up-and-down season.

Entering Week 8's "Thursday Night Football" matchup against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field (8:15 ET, Prime Video), the Panthers are a team of extremes. This is a squad that gave the Atlanta Falcons a 34-3 shellacking on the road in Week 2 and overcame the Detroit Lions' No. 2-ranked offense at home in a Week 4 win. They're also the group that gave up 552 net yards and eight total touchdowns to the Chicago Bears in Week 1 and got run over by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Bank of America Stadium to the tune of 258 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns in a 30-point blowout loss on Sunday.

While it would be easy to pile on Carolina's inconsistent defense, the offense -- which ranks fifth in the league entering Week 8 -- is not without its own lumps. There are concerns to be had around the roster, and while the Panthers (3-3) sit at the top of the NFC South, their hold on the division will only loosen if they continue to yo-yo their way through the campaign.

The Packers, who have a top-five passing offense and a top-10 passing defense, will presumably test the Panthers differently than the Buccaneers did last week. And with such a fast turnaround between a home letdown and a primetime battle on the road, Carolina will need to regroup quickly, even if Green Bay's league-worst rushing attack won't present the same challenges as Tampa Bay.

Here are the biggest concerns -- and a reason for optimism! -- for the Panthers entering the midway stretch of their season:

Panthers' run defense under coordinator Ejiro Evero has been troubled for years

Carolina's run defense was trending in the right direction heading into Sunday's nightmare afternoon against Tampa Bay. After giving up a franchise-record 59 points, along with 291 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns, to the Bears, Carolina saw its rushing yard allowance continually tick downward over the following four weeks. The defense held top-tier running backs Bijan Robinson of the Falcons and Jahmyr Gibbs of the Lions to 72 and 46 rushing yards, respectively, in impressive wins.

But against the Buccaneers, who had an injured Baker Mayfield -- wearing a uniquely designed glove for his dislocated thumb -- lining up under center, the Panthers allowed the rushing lane floodgates to open. Named defensive coordinator in Carolina in 2023, Evero oversaw a league-leading 12th occurrence (and third against the Buccaneers) of an opposing offense rushing for 200 yards or more against his unit since his hiring. The Panthers have allowed an opponent to rush for 200 or more yards six more times than any other defense in the league since the start of the coach Dave Canales era in 2024.

"That's what we're working on right now -- I don't really want to get into the specifics of it," Canales said Monday after facing questions about the team's recent history of poor run defense. "I feel like there's the adjustments and the things that we need to do. I don't want to really air that out, but just understanding that we got to do it. We got to execute it well."

The Panthers, because of their awful run outings against Chicago and Tampa Bay, are the worst-ranked run defense in the NFL through seven weeks (153.2 rushing yards allowed per game, which is 7.5 yards more than No. 31 Dallas Cowboys at 145.7).

But it's also worth noting that the woes against the run aren't new to the system or the scheme. In 2024, Evero's unit allowed a league-worst 3,057 total rushing yards (179.8 per game) while becoming the first defense since 1980 -- and the first with an expanded 17-game schedule -- to give up 3,000 or more rushing yards in a season.

While Evero's defense has its strengths, most notably in coverage, it's fair to wonder if (or when) the stark (and recurring) letdowns of the run game will eventually sour his standing in Carolina. Evero signed a contract extension in 2025 with the pact running through the 2027 season, a league source with knowledge of the deal confirmed to ESPN this week.

The defensive coordinator, who is well-regarded in league circles, has been a routine head coaching candidate over the past five years. But his time with the Panthers might eventually reach an impasse, as the team has invested a lot of draft capital and cash in upgrading the defense over the past two offseasons and the results haven't been particularly illuminating.

Though, notably, top free-agent outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips (hamstring) and the team's top two cornerbacks, Jaycee Horn (calf) and Mike Jackson (groin) -- both on injured reserve -- didn't play against the Bucs, and the Panthers, in general, have been dealing with a litany of notable injuries -- outside linebacker Nic Scourton, a 2025 second-round pick, included -- this season. Phillips and fill-in starting CB Akayleb Evans (knee/triceps) were both ruled out for Thursday's game.

"Together, we've got to coach it better, collectively," Canales said. "We've got to have that plan, so that when it becomes the same type of concepts, that our players feel prepared, they feel ready to attack whatever it is."

Carolina's makeshift offensive line is showing cracks in pass protection

Longtime right tackle Taylor Moton's return from offseason blood clot treatment was short-lived. It lasted just seven quarters. He suffered a fractured fibula in the third quarter of the loss to the Buccaneers, and will undergo season-ending ankle surgery, according to Canales.

The Panthers are left with few options on the starting offensive line. This year's first-round pick Monroe Freeling, who was selected as a long-term developmental left tackle, will (again) be thrust into fill-in duty at right tackle with Moton sidelined. Freeling allowed three pressures in 22 pass sets against Tampa Bay, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, while Moton gave up none in his 16 pass snaps before injury. The rookie, in five games, has surrendered 18 total pressures (including four sacks), according to Next Gen's tracking data.

Left tackle Rasheed Walker, who was signed to fill in for longtime starter Ikem Ekwonu (patellar tendon), was overmatched throughout the loss to the Bucs. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Walker allowed three sacks and seven total pressures in Week 7. He has given up a team-leading 34 pressures on the season.

The interior line hasn't fared much better. Center Luke Fortner and left guard Damien Lewis (who has been ruled out heading into Week 8 with a knee injury) have each been credited with four sacks allowed, while former Pro Bowl right guard Robert Hunt was beat cleanly on Sunday for what would become a strip-sack touchdown for Tampa Bay.

With Moton out, the Panthers need to lean on Walker and Freeling until Ekwonu is ready to return, and even then, the 2022 first-round pick might not be able to play up to his standard after knee surgery and a long stint on the physically unable to perform list. At center, the Panthers drafted Sam Hecht in the fifth round to be a potential long-term starter, but he was a healthy scratch on Sunday in favor of waiver-wire pickup Corey Bullock and Torricelli Simpkins III, who was promoted from the practice squad earlier this season. Simpkins, though, was listed as out for the matchup against the Packers with a left ankle injury.

Yes! There is reason for optimism entering Thursday night's game

Against Tampa Bay, quarterback Bryce Young had unquestionably his worst game of the season, giving up three turnovers (sack-fumble for a score and two interceptions). But entering that matchup, Young was on fire, setting the franchise record for passing touchdowns (11) through the first five games of the season.

Young hasn't been perfect, but he has largely been an efficient and stable performer for Carolina in 2026. He also has McMillan, Coker and tight ends Tommy Tremble and Darren Waller, who had a 52-yard TD on Sunday, to target in the passing attack. Carolina's weapons could come in handy Thursday night as Green Bay ranks ninth overall in passing defense (allowing 208.0 yards per game).

"When the protection allows it, we can still take advantage of those shot plays, but let's give him an early option so that he has somewhere to go with it, too," Canales said.

The Panthers are still second in the league in passing yards average per game (276.0) and fifth overall in total yardage per game (381.3), despite a middling rushing attack (21st-ranked with 105.3 yards per game). And even with that rushing attack not necessarily pulling its weight early this season, Hubbard, the team's top back, has produced 571 total yards and six touchdowns through six games. Hubbard should get plenty of opportunities against the Packers' 17th-ranked rushing defense.

According to ESPN Research, the Panthers have covered 12 consecutive games after a loss, which is one shy of the longest streak in the Super Bowl era (2011-13 Indianapolis Colts and 2022-25 Detroit Lions both covered 13 consecutive post-loss matchups). The Packers, though, have covered four straight games, which is the longest active cover streak in the NFL.

Dating back to 2025, the Panthers are also 8-3 following losses (including the playoffs), which is an encouraging sign heading into Green Bay.