Panthers' 2023 Roster Bubble: Wide Receivers

Read more on the Carolina Panthers wide receivers who are on the bubble to make the team entering the 2023 NFL season.

Carolina has five roster spots locked up in the receiver room which belong to Adam Thielen, DJ Chark, Terrace Marshall Jr., Laviska Shenault, and Jonathan Mingo.

It remains unclear how many receivers the Panthers will carry on the active roster but it's likely that there will only be one spot up for grabs. 

Who will be battling for that potential final spot?

Shi Smith

Smith had two 70-yard games last season but aside from that, he had a pretty quiet year. It's still too early in his career to write him off from ever being a quality depth receiver but this training camp/preseason is going to be a pivotal one for him in regard to his future in Carolina. 

One can assume that he enters training camp as the team's top option at punt returner, picking up 143 yards on 23 returns a season ago. But for Smith to cement his spot on the active roster, he has to show something on offense or one of the two guys below could oust him.

Damiere Byrd

Byrd has caught 63.7% percent of passes thrown in his direction throughout his career, so he offers a little more in the passing game than those who he's battling against. Then again, he's had more opportunities, so it's difficult to say he's the clear-cut best receiving option of the three. 

But that experience does mean something, though, especially for a young receiver room. Byrd has played in 75 career games, 31 of which came as a member of an NFC South team. He also adds some value on special teams having returned a combined 29 kicks/punts in his career.

Derek Wright

I never thought Derek Wright would factor into this conversation but he had a really strong spring and if that carries over into the preseason, he'll at least have a case to make the roster. Unfortunately for Wright, I believe we'll see him make it to the final round of cuts before landing on the practice squad. 

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