The Carolina Panthers have done lots of losing lately. They’ve lost 18 of their 21 games since the start of last season, lost No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young as a starter because of ineffectiveness, and lost to the previously winless Cincinnati Bengals in Week 4.
But they lost more than just the game to the Bengals, as Carolina also lost its leader and five-time captain, linebacker Shaq Thompson, for the remainder of the season because of a torn Achilles’ tendon.
It’s the second season-ending injury in a row for Thompson, 30, who suffered a broken leg in Week 2 of last season that knocked him out for the remaining 15 games.
He was hurt on Sunday on the final play of the third quarter in a non-contact injury. After hobbling for a few moments, he then took a seat on the field as trainers rushed to his aid. He was then helped off the field and carted to the locker room.
Prior to his latest injury, Thompson had played every defensive snap for the Panthers, one of just four defensive players on the team who could make that claim. Thompson heads to injured reserve leading Carolina in combined tackles (35), solo tackles (19), and assisted tackles (16).
Thompson—in his 10th NFL season, all with the Panthers—is the second-longest tenured player on Carolina, trailing only 16-year long snapper J.J. Jansen. Thompson and Jansen are the only Panthers still on the team who also played on Carolina’s last Super Bowl team in 2015.
Panthers coach Dave Canales talked about what Thompson has personally meant to him as an established veteran and locker room leader who has had the rookie head coach’s back since day one.
“I’m just sick for Shaq,” Canales said to reporters. “A guy that really just cares so much, plays with so much passion, a vocal leader, somebody who’s had my back through this process as I get my feet underneath me as a first-time head coach. To have the support of veteran guys like this, that stand for the right things, and people that I can talk to, people that I can ask to lead a charge for this thing or that thing that we’re looking to get more of.
“So, a guy that stood for all those things, Panthers football all the way through and through. So really just, personally and then, of course, he’s a fantastic communicator and player, so again, another blow for us and another great opportunity for [rookie LB Trevin Wallace] and for guys to step up.”
Thompson’s loss is a huge blow to a defense that was already bereft of talent as Carolina ranks last in the NFL in points allowed and is fifth-worst in yards allowed. It’s also the second major personnel loss on that side of the ball already this season. In Week 1, defensive tackle Derrick Brown, who made the Pro Bowl last season and is arguably the team’s best player, was lost for the year with a knee injury.
Prior to suffering these injuries in back-to-back years, Thompson was one of the most productive players in the sport. His 450 tackles from 2019 to 2022 ranked 11th in the National Football League, and for his career, Thompson has accumulated 741 total tackles to go along with 12 sacks, four forced fumbles, and three interceptions. He ranks fourth all-time in Panthers history in tackles, trailing only Luke Kuechly (1,092), Thomas Davis (1,077), and Mike Minter (771).
Thompson wasn’t the only loss for Carolina in Week 4, nor was he the only loss to the linebacker corps. Fellow inside linebacker Josey Jewell, who joined Carolina in the offseason after six years with the Denver Broncos, suffered groin and hamstring injuries in the loss to Cincinnati. Canales said that he doesn’t expect Jewell to play in Week 5 against the Chicago Bears and that Jewell would be dealing with the injuries “for a couple of weeks.”
Jewell ranks second on the team, behind Thompson, in tackles, so the core of Carolina’s defense is sidelined ahead of arguably the team’s most arduous stretch of the season. Three of the Panthers’ next four games are on the road, and four of their next six contests will be played away from home, including a Week 10 tilt in Germany to face the New York Giants.
Up next for Carolina is a trip to Chicago on Sunday, and these teams will forever be linked by the trade that netted Carolina the No. 1 overall pick in last year’s draft to select Young. The Bears traded that top overall pick in exchange for receiver D.J. Moore, two first-round picks and two second-round picks. Three of the four draft picks have already been made, but the last will be a 2025 second-rounder. Thus, Chicago has even more of an incentive to win Sunday’s game, as the worse Carolina’s record gets, the better that draft pick for Chicago becomes.
