Projecting the Panthers Defensive Starters 2.0

Taking a look at what the Carolina Panthers starting defensive unit may look like come September 13th

Heading into the 2020 season, the Carolina Panthers have a new defensive coordinator and will have to replace eight defensive starters from a year ago. It won't be easy, but the Panthers’ future on defense looks bright. Here is our latest projection of who will start on the defensive side of the ball for Carolina:

DE Brian Burns

DT Kawann Short

DT Derrick Brown

DE Yetur Gross-Matos

Defensive line analysis: First round draft pick Derrick Brown has lived up to the expectations early on and then some. He has looked the part and is going to be a dominant force on the interior of the line alongside Kawann Short. As for the edge rushers, it looks like the Panthers have Brian Burns going back to putting his hand in the dirt, which is what he mainly did during his time at Florida State - expect him to become more of a complete player in 2020. On the other side of the line, I'm going to go with Yetur Gross-Matos, the second rounder out of Penn State. He ran with the ones during yesterday's live practice and Stephen Weatherly ran with the twos. He seems to have earned some trust with the coaching staff.

LB Shaq Thompson

LB Tahir Whittehead

Linebacker analysis: No change at all here in the linebacking unit as expected. Thompson and Whitehead will be the glue of this Panther defense and will be looked upon as the leaders of the defensive unit. Thompson has been dealing with some bumps and bruises during training camp, but nothing serious. Should any injuries occur, I would suspect that either Jermaine Carter Jr. or Adarius Taylor will fill-in. 

CB Donte Jackson 

CB Eli Apple

Cornerback analysis: The cornerback room is the most concerning area of the defense. Donte Jackson is very talented and is one of the fastest corners in the league, but is he ready to be a No. 1 corner? I'm not so sure on that just yet. Eli Apple will be on the opposite side of the field and has had a really rocky start to his career. If he doesn't regain his form, rookie Troy Pride Jr. will be one of the first off the bench to slide into a starting role. T.J. Green will also be competing for a spot in the cornerback rotation.

FS Tre Boston

S Juston Burris

DB Jeremy Chinn

Safety analysis: This trio will be what holds the back end together and prevents big plays from happening in the aerial attack. Boston is one of the most underrated safeties in the game, Burris is having an unbelievably good training camp, and Chinn does not look like a rookie whatsoever. There's a lot of potential with this group and I think you'll be able to tell early on how important it is for these three to play at a high level week in and week out.

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