Last week, the Carolina Panthers made two moves regarding their special teams unit for the 2025 season. First, the Panthers re-signed veteran long snapper J.J. Jansen to a one-year contract, making it his 17th year in the Queen City.
In addition to the re-signing of Jansen, the Panthers also signed kicker Matthew Wright to a reserve/future deal. Wright spent the 2024 season with three teams — the San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs, and Tennessee Titans.
While the Panthers have figured out their long snapper and kicker situations, there are still some questions regarding the future of veteran punter Johnny Hekker. The 35-year-old punter is set to become an unrestricted free agent in March.
Hekker has spent the last three years in Carolina with mixed results. In his first season with the Panthers, the veteran averaged 48.5 yards per punt (career-high), with 48.1 percent of his punts downed inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.
However, over the last two years, Hekker’s yards per punt average dropped to 46.8 in 2023 and 45.7 in 2024. Joe Person of The Athletic believes the veteran will return despite this downward trend.
“The Panthers’ plan with Hekker doesn’t seem as clear-cut as the Jansen and Pineiro situations. But if I had to guess, I’d say Hekker will return along with Jansen.”
If the Panthers do not decide to bring the veteran punter back, Carolina could look to address the position in free agency or the NFL draft. However, the last time the Panthers took a punter was in 2012, when they selected Brad Nortman in the sixth round.
Nortman spent four years with the Panthers before spending the next two years in Jacksonville. The former sixth-round pick didn’t put up crazy numbers in Carolina, averaging 45.2 yards per punt return.
While Hekker’s decline is not great for the Panthers heading into next season, it's not the most pressing need this offseason. Therefore, Carolina should be okay one more year with Hekker, but they should consider bringing in a punter during training camp/rookie minicamp.