Panthers OTAs: Hunter Renfrow, Tetairoa McMillan and more to watch

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dave Canales and his staff had their first look at the team’s rookies during a two-day minicamp earlier this month. Following the holiday weekend, they’ll get the whole gang together.

The Carolina Panthers’ offseason program ramps up to something more closely resembling real football Tuesday with the first of six scheduled OTA practices over the next two weeks. Those will be followed by a three-day mandatory minicamp from June 10-12.

The NFL allows for up to 10 OTA practices, but the Panthers are among 15 teams slated to use only six. As with the rookie camp, no live contact is allowed in the OTA or minicamp practices. But teams can stage 7-on-7, 9-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills, so it’s at least a start.

One OTA practice each week and the entire minicamp is open to the media. Here’s what I’ll be watching:

Wide receiver pecking order

A year ago, we were just beginning to document the Diontae Johnson experiment, which didn’t make it to Halloween. Johnson has been on three different teams since then, including two stints with the Baltimore Ravens.

Meanwhile, the Panthers bolstered their receiving corps by drafting Tetairoa McMillan with the eighth pick, adding former Colorado receiver Jimmy Horn in the sixth round and taking a flier on Hunter Renfrow, the former Clemson and Raiders receiver who was out of the league last year while dealing with ulcerative colitis.

McMillan figures to get the majority of his work at the X, with Adam Thielen and Xavier Legette lining up at the slot and the Z, respectively. But it will be interesting to see how the reps shake out among the receivers a little farther down the depth chart, a group that includes Jalen Coker, Renfrow, Horn and David Moore, who was re-signed to a one-year deal after a career resurgence last season.

Something else to track: Bryce Young’s touch passes to the 6-foot-4 McMillan, whose ability to high-point balls and get open on scramble plays should mesh well with Young’s skills in both of those areas.

Which edge rushers emerge

Jadeveon Clowney’s release leaves the Panthers with only a couple of proven edge rushers in D.J. Wonnum and free-agent acquisition Patrick Jones, a situational pass rusher in Minnesota who finished with a career-high seven sacks last year. But that was part of the point in moving on from Clowney: To open up playing opportunities for young players like second-round pick Nic Scourton and third-rounder Princely Umanmielen.

Besides their SEC backgrounds, the two outside linebackers don’t have much in common regarding their pass-rush arsenal. Umanmielen is a speed rusher with a good bend, while Scourton relied on a power repertoire and, at times, nearly ate his way into an interior position in college.

Neither lacks confidence.

Besides a “nasty demeanor” and natural leadership skills, Scourton pointed to his competitiveness when asked what sets him apart. “I’m not coming just to say I made it to the NFL,” he said. “I think I can add a lot to the defense, just by being myself, coming in and working hard, getting around the vets and just getting better.”

And Umanmielen believes he’s more than just a one-trick pass rusher. “I didn’t really have to use power against offensive tackles. I was winning with my moves, so there was no reason to convert to power,” he said. “There were times where I go power and it does show up on film a lot. I squat 700 pounds, so I know I have a lot of power.”

Checking on Derrick Brown and others in their rehab process

When Brown spoke with reporters in April, the Pro Bowl defensive end indicated his goal was Week 1 — not OTA practices in May — in terms of a timeline in returning from knee surgery. There’s no reason for the Panthers to be in a rush with Brown, whose loss was felt across the whole defense after he tore his meniscus in the season opener against the New Orleans Saints.

“We’re just kind of week to week, just seeing where he’s at with his confidence level, conditioning level and all that,” Canales said of Brown. “We’ll kind of just play that by ear.”

Brown said last month he’s following the doctors’ and trainers’ orders. “No rush, just trying to get back,” he said. “I would like to be able to be there when the team gets ready to play in September.”

Second-year linebacker Trevin Wallace is farther along in his recovery from offseason shoulder surgery and is expected to participate in OTAs and the mandatory minicamp. Wallace, last year’s third-round pick from Kentucky, started eight games as a rookie after Shaq Thompson was injured. Wallace totaled 64 tackles.

Panthers star defensive tackle Derrick Brown is coming back from a meniscus tear in 2024, with a goal to be ready by Week 1 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. (John Byrum / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Second-teamers in the secondary

The starting secondary looks to be set after the Panthers re-signed cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Michael Jackson and overhauled their safety room, where former Raider Tre’von Moehrig and fourth-round pick Lathan Ransom are replacing Xavier Woods and Jordan Fuller.

Veteran Nick Scott and second-year Demani Richardson are the backups at safety, while Chau Smith-Wade returns at nickel. But the rest of the depth chart looks a little shaky. The Panthers kept cornerback Shemar Bartholomew around all last season after claiming him from the New York Jets in August, so they see something they like in the 6-foot-1, 200-pounder.

The Panthers also have two other waiver claims at corner: Akayleb Evans, whom they acquired off waivers from Minnesota last year, and recent addition MJ Devonshire, who spent all of 2024 on the Raiders’ practice squad. Devonshire was a ballhawk and playmaker at Pittsburgh, intercepting eight passes (and returning three for touchdowns) over his final three college seasons.

Let the kicking competition begin

One of the storylines during OTAs last year was the absence of kicker Eddy Pineiro, who remained in Florida while looking for a contract extension that never came. After opting not to re-sign Pineiro, the Panthers brought in undrafted free agent Ryan Fitzgerald to compete with journeyman Matthew Wright.

Previous kicking battles didn’t begin in earnest until training camp, but Canales is eager to get going on finding a successor to Pineiro, No. 3 on the NFL’s all-time field goal percentage list but with questionable leg strength. “We’ll start kicking now,” Canales said recently.

Fitzgerald should be considered the favorite. The south Georgia native made all of his kicks during his final season at Florida State, including a 5-for-5 mark on field goals of 50-plus. He appears ready for the challenge.

“I think at this level, every year regardless of the team, it’s gonna be a competition. I love that. I’m a competitor,” Fitzgerald told The Athletic during rookie camp. “But the key to that is just focus on myself. It’s me versus the uprights, not me versus another guy. I’m sure that’s the same for Matt’s mindset as well. Just excited to get to work with the guys.”

(Top photo: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

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