Having concluded their season on Sunday, the Panthers have begun to sign players to their 90-man offseason roster, inking eight players to reserve/futures contracts on Tuesday. The team’s official website has the complete list of signees, all of whom finished the season on Carolina’s practice squad:
- Chas Alecxih, DT
- Marcus Ball, S (previously reported)
- Brian Blechen, LB
- Damiere Byrd, WR
- Rakim Cox, DE
- Reese Dismukes, OL
- Ras-I Dowling, S
- David Foucault, T
With eight of the 10 Panthers practice squad players re-signing with the team, only defensive end Wes Horton and linebacker Nate Askew didn’t get new deals. It’s possible that Carolina didn’t offer either player a futures contract, but it also wouldn’t be a surprise if Horton, at least, wanted to explore other opportunities.
An undrafted rookie in 2013, Horton made 15 starts for the Panthers last season in place of suspended teammate Greg Hardy. Following a rookie campaign that saw him compile eight tackles and two sacks, the former USC standout finished 2014 with 26 tackles and three sacks. However, he returned to a bench role in 2015, then was suspended four games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance enhancing substances, before ultimately being cut from the 53-man roster in December. He signed with Carolina’s practice squad at the start of the postseason.
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