Panthers Bolster Pass Rush and Reset at LB

By Matt Schauf | Updated on Tue, Mar 10 2026 2:34 AM UTC

The Pantheres on Monday agreed to terms with free-agent Edge Jaelan Phillips and free-agent LB Devin Lloyd. It's a three-year, $45 million deal with Lloyd, according to NFL Network, that will include $25 million guaranteed. Phillips garnered a monster four-year, $120 million pact that includes $80 million in guarantees.

2026 Fantasy Football Impact

The Panthers tied for just 28th in the league last year with 30 sacks. That marked the third straight season of 32 or fewer and sixth straight year of fewer than 40.

Phillips totaled just 5 sacks while splitting time with the Dolphins and Eagles last season, and he has yet to match his rookie-year high of 8.5 sacks.

But his 73 regular-season pressures ranked ninth among all edge players, even while Phillips ranked just 20th in pass-rush chances.

Even if he continues to fall short of double-digit sacks, Phillips will certainly help the Carolina pass rush. Just don't overrate the 27-year-old edge (as of May 28) for IDP purposes.

Lloyd the Stronger IDP Asset

Carolina's new off-ball should make a much bigger fantasy impact.

Lloyd checked in just 38th among LBs in fantasy points per game last season (depending on your format), and even that number was inflated by 5 INTs -- including a pick-6.

But Lloyd scored better each of the previous three seasons and showed more pass-rushing ability in college than he has been tasked to display in the pros.

There's cross-category scoring potential here, and probably a higher tackle ceiling now that he's away from Foye Oluokun.

Just beware of Lloyd climbing too high on IDP draft boards. He'll be fine in low-LB2 territory to start.

Other Winners & Losers

Edge Nic Scourton, a second-round 2025 pick, probably benefits from Phillips' arrival. He got loads of playing time as a rookie but could use a boost in his pass-rush performance.

Edge classmate Princely Umanmielen, a third-rounder, now looks pretty blocked.

LB Trevin Wallace probably falls back from full playing time with Lloyd's arrival. Last year's No. 2 LB -- usually Christian Rozeboom -- often played less than 80% of the snaps.

Matt Schauf, Editor

Matt has earned two Fantasy Pros accuracy awards for IDP rankings and won thousands of dollars as a player across best ball, dynasty, and high-stakes fantasy formats. He has been creating fantasy football content for more than 20 years, with work featured by Sporting News, Rotoworld, Athlon, Sirius XM, and others. He's been with Draft Sharks since 2011.