The initial wave of NFL free agency has come and gone, but quality players are still looking for new teams. The Carolina Panthers brought in bigger names like Rico Dowdle and Tershawn Wharton once free agency began, but they are still looking for secondary help.
Recent reports have the team hosting a starting safety who spent the first five years of his career with the Indianapolis Colts.
Panthers Hosting Julian Blackmon for Free Agent Visit
Head coach Dave Canales’ first season leading the Panthers was a mess. The team went 5-12 and secured the No. 8 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Quarterback Bryce Young was benched after an ugly 0-2 start before returning to the lineup and going 3-10 down the stretch.
Canales came to the Panthers after one season as offensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but his offense finished No. 24 in PFSN’s Offense+ Metric last season. Young looked better, but the season was too far gone for the Panthers to recover.
The more significant issue for Carolina in 2024 was the defense. The unit finished No. 32 in PFSN’s Defense+ Metric, earning a 53.5 (F) grade. They allowed 534 points last season, breaking the record for most points allowed in a season. That record could be discredited because of the 17-game schedule, but the Panthers’ 31.4 points per game allowed ranks sixth-worst all-time.
The Panthers locked up cornerback Jaycee Horn with a massive four-year, $100 million extension, but the team still needs help in its secondary. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport first reported that the team is hosting former Colts’ safety Julian Blackmon for a free agent visit.
Free agent S Julian Blackmon is on a free agent visit to the #Panthers today, sources say.
Just 26, Blackmon has been a starter with the #Colts for the last five years. Carolina is still looking to add on defense, with Blackmon being the latest they’re taking a look at. pic.twitter.com/umOww21zu1
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet)
Rapoport tweeted, “Free agent S Julian Blackmon is on a free agent visit to the #Panthers today, sources say. Just 26, Blackmon has been a starter with the #Colts for the last five years. Carolina is still looking to add on defense, with Blackmon being the latest they’re taking a look at.” Carolina has lost Xavier Woods, Dane Jackson, and Jordan Fuller to free agency, so targeting the secondary is necessary.
Blackmon was a third-round pick by Indianapolis in the 2020 NFL Draft and has started 62 games in this five-year career. He posted 86 tackles and three interceptions in 16 games last season. Blackmon has 300 tackles, 10 interceptions, and one pick-six in his career.
Bleacher Report’s John Frascella also tweeted about the visit, saying, “NFL Free Agency UPDATE: Safety Julian Blackmon, one of the best remaining players on the market, is set to meet with the Panthers, a team that has already been very active this offseason. Seems like a good personnel fit to me.”
The Panthers will need to add more than Blackmon to sure up its defense, but bringing in a quality player with over 60 career starts is a good place to begin.
