Three sleeper picks to make the Panthers 53-man roster

Rookies arrived Friday for the Carolina Panthers training camp.

Veterans will be in town by Saturday, July 20, with practicing kicking off at Bank of America Stadium next week.

Throughout the offseason, the Panthers have made several changes to the roster. Training camp and preseason will be a time for those on the fringes to make their case as to why they deserve to be on the 53-man. With that said, here is a look at three players who appear to have a great chance at making the final roster if all goes well.

1.) WR Jalen Coker

As the Panthers look to retool the offense in the shape of Bryce Young, having more wide receivers on the roster will always help.

It also helps when that player has good size, which Coker possesses. In his final two seasons at Holy Cross, he totaled 1,952 yards and 26 touchdowns.

His presence immediately adds depth to the Panthers wide receiver room that already has names like Diontae Johnson, Xavier Legette, and Adam Thielen. During the offseason, Dave Canales also was fairly impressed with Coker, offering a breakdown of his game to reporters.

"He’s really crafty in zones," Canales said. "He knows how to find the open spaces. Has a little cool run-after-catch, too. He can break some tackles because of the size that he brings."

High praise for a player currently on the outside looking into the 53-man roster.

2.) CB Willie Drew

Cornerback is a uniquely weak position depth-wise. Drew would help add to that quickly.

Carolina is currently looking at Dane Jackson at cornerback, then there are names like Dicaprio Bootle, D’Shawn Jamison and Lamar Jackson.

The Panthers have flirted with Stephon Gilmore but nothing has authentically materialised. Drew could answer some of Carolina's questions at cornerback.

3.) LB Eku Leota

Not a big game player in 2023, Leota represents a depth addition to the Panthers roster.

He, at least on paper, fits with players like D.J. Wonnum and DJ Johnson down, and Jadeveon Clowney and K'Lavon Chaisson. At the very least, he is a real special teams candidate on the 53-man roster.