Carolina has signed nine players to "future" contracts for the 2017 season. All nine players either ended the year on the practice squad or spent time on the Panthers' practice squad during the 2016 season.
| POS | PLAYER | EXP | COLLEGE |
| T | Blaine Clausell | 1 | Mississippi State |
| DT | Eric Crume | 1 | Syracuse |
| WR | Keyarris Garrett | 1 | Tulsa |
| CB | Tyler Patmon | 3 | Oklahoma State |
| RB | Jalen Simmons | 1 | South Carolina State |
| TE | Scott Simonson | 3 | Assumption |
| T | Pearce Slater | 1 | San Diego State |
| T | Tyrus Thompson | 1 | Oklahoma |
| TE | Eric Wallace | 1 | Seattle |
The contracts are referred to as "future" contracts because even though the players have signed, they do not officially become members of the roster until the beginning of the new league year on March 9.
Future contracts essentially allow teams to sign players for the upcoming season even though the new season has not begun yet. Only players who are not on an NFL team's 53-man active roster at the conclusion of the regular season are eligible for these contracts.
