53 Men: LB Shaq Thompson Player Profile

Taking a look at what kind of season Panthers linebacker Shaq Thompson could have in 2020

LB Shaq Thompson

Height: 6'0"

Weight: 230 lbs

College: Washington

NFL stats: 356 tackles, 29 TFL, 20 QB Hits, 9.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, one interception

Depth Chart Projection: Starter

Since his rookie year in 2015, Thompson has lived in a starting role and that won't be any different in 2020 or beyond. This offseason he signed a four-year, $54 million contract extension, so the Panthers are expecting big things out of him over the next few years.

Analysis:

From a football perspective, Thompson is one of the most underrated linebackers in the entire league. He is a tackling machine and has extremely good instincts. The one part of his game that he will have to add is leadership. He has great leadership skills, but the defense will need them now more than ever that Luke Kuechly is no longer on the roster. I'd like to see him create more negative plays, but really that's just me nitpicking because there's not much of his game that needs work - he's just about as polished as one can get. 

53-Man Roster Status: Lock

Thompson will be the glue of the linebacking corps and the more plays he makes, the better this Panthers defense will be. With a very thin on experience linebacker unit, I would expect him to see the field on a high percentage of snaps. 

Previous "53 Men" projections

1. QB Teddy Bridgewater

2. QB Will Grier

3. RB Christian McCaffrey

4. RB Mike Davis

5. RB Reggie Bonnafon

6. WR D.J. Moore

7. WR Curtis Samuel

8. WR Robby Anderson

9. WR Seth Roberts

No. 10 WR Keith Kirkwood

No. 11 WR Pharoh Cooper

No. 12 TE Ian Thomas

No. 13 TE Chris Manhertz

No. 14 TE Temarrick Hemingway

No. 15 FB Alex Armah

No. 16 OT Russell Okung

No. 17 OT Greg Little

No. 18 OG Michael Schofield III

No. 19 C Matt Paradis

No. 20 C Tyler Larsen

No. 21 OG/OT Dennis Daley

No. 22 OG John Miller

No. 23 OT Taylor Moton

No. 24 DE Stephen Weatherly

No. 25 DE Yetur Gross-Matos

No. 26 DE Efe Obada

No. 27 DL Zach Kerr

No. 28 DT Kawann Short

No. 29 DT Derrick Brown

No. 30 DT Bravvion Roy

No. 31 DL Myles Adams

No. 32 EDGE Brian Burns

No. 33 EDGE Marquis Haynes

What type of season do you expect from Shaq Thompson? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!

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