Trevin Wallace's stellar preseason play continues to prove that he was a steal in the 2024 NFL Draft

Matt Alquiza | Aug 20, 2024

August 8, 2024; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots guard Michael Jordan (74) blocks Carolina Panthers linebacker Trevin Wallace (56) during the first half at Gillette Stadium. / Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

Trevin Wallace knows his history. 

The 2024 third round pick is following in the footsteps of an illustrious group of linebackers that have suited up for the Carolina Panthers. Luke Kuechly, Thomas Davis, and Wallace’s current boss, Dan Morgan, are just a few of the laundry list of names that the rookie is chasing in his quest to be an immortal name in Panthers’ lore.

Through a month of training camp, Wallace has done everything in his power to earn a role in Ejiro Evero’s defense. The former Kentucky Wildcat punctuated his training camp with an interception of Aaron Rodgers in Thursday’s joint practice with the Jets. One would think that a young player at the peak of a profession that he’s worked for 21 years to reach would take a second and celebrate a play like that. Not Trevin Wallace.  

"I just be like okay on to the next. Next play. Keep going. I picked it off and people dapped me up and I said 'next play.'"

His interception of the four-time MVP was the defining defensive moment of Thursday’s joint practice. Rodgers and his offense moved the ball against the Panthers defense with ease in that team period, just for Wallace to ground the Jets before the reached the end zone. A recovered fumble at the goal line in addition to the earlier interception stamped Wallace’s status as a rising star on the Carolina defense. His stock is soaring, bit Wallace hasn’t yet earned a starting spot in the second level as he sits and waits behind veterans Shaq Thompson and Josey Jewell. Due to his standing as a backup, he was offered the opportunity to shine under the bright lights of Bank of America Stadium in preseason action on Saturday night. 

Wallace was asked what he wants his coaches to say about him in the meeting rooms. "That he's flying around. Flying around and seeing things real fast. That's one thing I want them to say." The tape from Saturday night shows him doing exactly that. 

📽️Film Room: LB Trevin Wallace📽️

🔘29 snaps v NYJ
🔘2 solo tackles
🔘2 assisted tackles
🔘1 assisted ST tackle pic.twitter.com/KoASHFNT7E

— John Ellis (@1PantherPlace) August 19, 2024

Wallace was all over the field on Saturday night. His ability to chew up grass in pursuit showed up on each of his defensive snaps from the weekend's action. The rookie boasts lateral speed and sure-handed tackling skills that will make it hard to keep him off the field come September.

The historical greats of the Carolina Panthers’ linebacker room have a fraternal bond. Wallace not only heaped praise on current starters Jewell and Thompson for their assistance in his quick development, but he dished on his relationship with Thomas Davis as well. "Me and TD (Davis) be talking. We be joking around cause he's from Georgia too...that's someone that I can talk to."

The rookie linebacker remembers watching both TD and Luke Kuechly on TV. He tries to mirror their games as he marries his ability to fly around the field with reckless abandon with a cerebral mindset as the game slows down for him. The rookie has all of the physical tools a linebacker needs, the next step is to develop mentally and understand the game like the all-time greats Davis and Kuechly did, and like his current mentors Thompson and Jewell do. 

"I feel like I'm just hesitating a little bit. (I need to) stop hesitating and just go...Especially when I'm not in and Shaq and Josey are in, I always get mental reps. I'm watching how they're (Thompson and Jewell) moving, how they're flowing, and how they communicate."

Dan Morgan famously talked about needing more dawgs in Charlotte. A dawg himself, Morgan knows what a linebacker who plays with that mindset looks like. Wallace has that in spades, and while he learned some tricks of the trade by tuning into Davis and Kuechly roam the second level of the defense in their primes, he’s not too familiar with Dan Morgan’s on-field resume. "I wasn't even born when Dan was playing."

Wallace may not remember seeing his boss roam the second level of the Panthers' defense, but he has the opportunity to etch himself into Morgan's memory and Panthers' lore. The rookie has the opportunity to be the next up in a long line of great linebackers who have patrolled Bank of America Stadium, and he's off to a great start.

August 20

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