Rookie Pass-Catcher Pops Up on Panthers' Injury Report Ahead of Week 16

The Carolina Panthers have been hit hard by the injury bug this week, losing two linebackers to season-ending injuries (Trevin Wallace and Claudin Cherelus). The Panthers also will not have rookie wide receiver Xavier Legette for Sunday’s game because of a groin injury.

After getting hammered by the Dallas Cowboys last week at home, Carolina can not afford to have any more injuries before this weekend’s game against Arizona. 

On Thursday, the Panthers had a new addition to the Week 16 injury report at the receiver spot, which is not good news for second-year quarterback Bryce Young. Rookie wide receiver Jalen Coker suddenly appeared on the injury report as a limited participant.

According to Joe Person of The Athletic, Coker was one of several players listed as limited by the ball club. The rookie wide receiver was listed with a quad injury, which is concerning as he missed three games recently due to this injury.

Coker returned last week against the Cowboys, posting four receptions (six targets) for 110 yards and a touchdown. This season, the former Holy Cross star has 21 receptions (32 targets) for 373 yards and two touchdowns.

The Panthers will wait to see how the young receiver practices on Friday before making their final designation for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals.

But with all that being said, if Coker is somehow ruled out, the Panthers’ passing game will be severely limited. Adam Thielen will vault to the WR1 spot, making him Bryce Young’s main go-to option. We should also expect rookie tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders' target share to go up despite not being a factor in Carolina's last two games.

However, can Carolina depend on David Moore, Deven Thompkins, and Dan Chisena? That’s a huge question that the Panthers might have to answer on Sunday.

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