The Carolina Panthers continue to make waves with their rookie additions, well after the 2026 NFL Draft, and the latest addition can be an impactful player to watch at rookie minicamp.
The Carolina Panthers made waves during the 2026 NFL Draft with multiple top networks viewing the team’s draft class as one of the top groups in the entire league.
Since the draft ended, general manager Dan Morgan continued working on adding more talent to the roster going into the offseason with undrafted free agent signings, including a helluva process landing quarterback Haynes King.
The Panthers have also send out a few invites to the team’s rookie minicamp to see if anyone else can come in and make an impact in front of the staff. The latest accepted invite has a strong chance to do just that.
Former LSU pass rusher Patrick Payton will be in attendance at the Panthers’ rookie minicamp after officially accepting his invitation from the team, according to draft expert Justin Melo. Payton is a promising player off the edge and one of the positions the team could use some depth at.
During the 2023 season, Payton shined at Florida State totaling 7.0 sacks and 14.5 tackles for a loss, earning early-round consideration from draft experts. Payton regressed in 2024 and opted to transfer to LSU in 2025 instead of entering the draft early. With the Tigers, Payton had just 1.0 sack and 5 tackles for a loss in 13 games.
Florida State EDGE Patrick Payton has some unreal length and burst pic.twitter.com/KGO3h3n5vu
It’s easy to see why teams were weary of drafting this guy given the fall of in his production over the last two seasons, but Payton has encouraging traits to try and develop looking at his length and athleticism. The other concern is that he’s maxed out in terms of his size and struggled at times setting the edge in the run game.
Yet, sometimes, guys like Payton just need an opportunity to get a foot in the door and that’s what the Panthers are giving him. It’ll be a long-shot for Payton to make the 53-man roster, but he’s someone that can impress enough to earn a practice squad position.
It’s a low-risk move that can put him in front of the coaches to see if there’s some traits in there worth developing. If not, the Panthers will look toward other options to improve the roster depth off the edge.