CHARLOTTE — When Dan Morgan sat down for his introductory press conference as general manager back on February 1, 2024, he laid out a vision for what he wanted the Carolina Panthers to become. It involved the kind of players they would be bringing in through the draft and free agency, the standard they would demand from the roster, and how he hoped fans would be a part of the process.

"I remember those towels out there, the white towels waving around," Morgan said at the time, recalling the 2003 and 2004 playoff games he was a part of as a linebacker, when the Panthers took on the Cowboys in Charlotte.

"That's my dream for this organization. I was talking to Dave (Canales) about that today, and we need to get that back, that excitement back here, and that's our goal, is to roll up our sleeves, work hard, and find those types of players that are going to help us get back to home playoff games and winning."

Less than two years later, Morgan sat in Bank of America Stadium on Saturday night and saw that dream come to fruition.

"That atmosphere was unbelievable," Morgan gushed Tuesday during his end-of-season press conference. "It kind of gave me chills, sitting up there, just looking at the crowd, looking at the fans, looking at the excitement, the city coming together, this region coming together, the Carolinas. It's just amazing what football can do to a community.

"I was here in 2003, 2004 when we played the Cowboys in that playoff game, and I've never seen the crowd like that. So, again, that was unbelievable and really a credit to them for showing up, showing out, and supporting our team. It's definitely what I envisioned when I took this job.

But now that's just a taste of what he and the Carolina Panthers want to see come next. The Panthers fell on Saturday night, 34-31, in what felt like an instant classic for the franchise and the NFL playoffs. That is now the standard, many players said afterwards, the bar to be met and surpassed.

On Tuesday, their GM concurred, pushing his dreams now even farther.

"I see even bigger things moving forward to where this is going to be a consistent thing and not just a flash in the pan," preached Morgan. "Like we're expecting to win now. We're not coming into a season unsure; we feel like we know where we are, we feel like we know who we are. And we're just ready to get to work, and we have to earn everything. Everything that we get, we have to earn."

Creating that consistency starts right away this offseason. Morgan and his staff will meet their first prominent landmark this spring with free agency. The league year begins on March 11, but the Panthers can enter into deals with any free agents currently on their roster between now and then. Starting on March 9, they can begin to negotiate with free agents from other clubs.

In the past, that time of year typically saw the Panthers scramble, signing one-year deals and creating turnover off-season after off-season. With the team's upward trajectory over the last two years, notably how the 2025 season concluded, Morgan knows he has an easier pitch to free agents this time around.

"I think definitely having some success makes it easier to attract those free agents," Morgan admitted. "But I would also say having a coach like Coach Canales, I think guys are going to want to come here, and they're going to want to play for him."

Canales will enter his third season as a head coach with the Panthers. Under his tutelage, the team has gone from the two-win squad he inherited to five wins in 2024 and eight wins in 2025, with a playoff berth for the first time since 2017 and hosting a playoff game as NFC South champions for the first time since 2015.

There is a culture being created on the field and off, Morgan acknowledged, and it's something the nine-year NFL veteran knows is tangible to players.

"Just the way that he carries himself, the enthusiasm that he has on a day-to-day basis, the way he leads those guys, this is a fun environment, we work really hard, but we also have fun doing what we do. And if I was a player again, I would want to play for a coach like that."

The Panthers have enough cap space to make some moves in free agency. But Morgan also feels comfortable with the base of what they currently have in the locker room. There are holes to address, the GM admitted, but this isn't a wholesale change kind of offseason.

"I feel like we have a strong foundation of guys. I think that they — it's definitely something foundation-wise that we can definitely build upon. And that's my job and my team's job and the coach's job and all of us collaborating together to bring the right guys and build this thing the right way," Morgan explained.

"We're still going to be patient, we're not going to be reckless, but we're going to definitely attack our weaknesses, like we've done in the past couple of years.

"Our locker room was tight. Again, it was like a family environment in there, and that's what we want here. We want these guys to be close because we're only going to go as far as the players. They got to be close in order to go where we want to go. And this is definitely a close locker room, it's made up of the right guys, and from my seat, we'll continue to add guys that fit the mold for the type of player that we want to add into our culture."

The plan at No. 19

The Panthers are picking at No. 19 in this year's NFL draft, following an 8-10 season (including the postseason). It will be the latest the club will pick in a draft since 2018 when they selected D.J. Moore at No. 24 overall, following a season that finished 11-5. Technically, receiver Xavier Legette was drafted at No. 32 overall in 2024, but that was a pick the Panthers traded into.

A plan is coming together for the pick, Morgan told reporters on Tuesday, with a draft board that already has over 600 players. As for what they'll do at that position, he's keeping that close to the chest for now.

"Oh yeah, I got them," smiled Morgan, acknowledging he knows where the holes are currently. "I think some of the needs aren't a secret, so I'm not going to — just from like a competitive advantage, really name all the needs up here."

The beauty of having the pick at No. 19, according to Morgan, is the ability to find the right balance between need and best available without forcing anything.

"I think you never really want to force a need. Now, if it's equal and you have two guys up on the board and they're even, I'm always going to go with the need," the GM explained. "I think with that pick, ideally you draft best available, you don't force a need because I feel like in my experience, when you force a need, it really doesn't always turn out that good.

"So, we're just going to draft good football players… that doesn't mean we're not going to attack the needs in some way, whether free agency or draft, but definitely just want to bring good football players, good culture people into this building."

The future of the RB unit

Dan Morgan sat down to meet with every player over the last couple of days, including running back Rico Dowdle. The free agent indicated to reporters on Sunday that he wasn't sure what the future held for him, and wasn't sure if he wanted to return to the Panthers, pointing to decreased carries in recent weeks.

Dowdle finished the season with 236 carries for 1,076 yards and six rushing touchdowns, as well as 39 receptions for 297 yards and a receiving touchdown. There had not been a 100-yard scrimmage game on his card since Week 11 against the Falcons (exactly 100 yards from scrimmage), though.

Those numbers are part and parcel of the entire offense working together, though, Morgan pointed out.

"It's more just the flow of the game type thing and there's only so many carries that go around, there's only so many drives, and I think it just kind of worked out that way and him not being as productive on the back end or just our running backs in general not being as productive on the back end, I think all that works together.

"The offensive line has to be right. Our receivers have to be blocking right, so it's not just one guy or one thing. They all have to work together for the run game to get going."

Morgan, for his part, felt like their talk went well and is encouraged that the two parties will find a future that works best for everyone, no matter where Dowdle plays in 2026.

"I met with him. I had a really good conversation with him in my office upstairs. I meet with all the players before they leave for the offseason. He didn't give me any indication of that. I thought we left on a good note. We'll see where it goes from here.

"In terms of Rico, re-signing him, I think it's still early in the season. I think you let those guys take a break, just kind of assess if this is the right fit for them, and we'll do the same thing upstairs, we'll talk about a plan of action, and then we'll go from there."

The Panthers also have a running back they hope is back in the fold this coming season, with Jonathon Brooks. The 2024 draft pick has appeared in only three games thus far, spending the first part of his rookie season recovering from an ACL tear suffered in college, and then suffered the same injury in Week 14 of last season, causing him to miss this entire year.

Brooks told reporters on Sunday that he was hopeful to be back on the field for minicamps, but the timeline was still to be determined. Morgan shared this week that he's been encouraged by Brooks' progress thus far.

"Just seeing Jonathon around the facility every day, the way that he attacks his rehab, the way that he attacks the weight room, just always around the building with a smile on his face, he's been through so much adversity, and he's overcoming it, and he's looking great.

"He's running really well. I saw him out there running routes the other day. He looked great. So yeah, he's doing really good. I'm really proud of him and the way he's attacked this rehab process. It's not easy, and he's done great at it, so we'll see where he's at; we'll take it week-by-week, month-by-month, but he's headed in a good direction."

Evero's extension lines up with Canales' contract

Dave Canales was adamant and emphatic on Sunday when he told reporters he "absolutely, 100 percent" would retain defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero.

"I have complete trust in Ejiro," he said at the time. "Love the way that he's brought this group to play quality football together, and he's got my full support."

It's a sentiment shared around the building and why the club actually reworked Evero's contract ahead of the 2025 season to align with Canales', Morgan shared this week.

"So we aligned him and Dave up before the season and, you know, we think highly of EJ," complimented Morgan. "EJ has a really great football mind. We love this defense. It's a really aggressive defense, and I think as we continue to add players to the defense, I think that you'll see this defense kind of come together.

"We've made a lot of improvements on the defensive side of the ball this year, and we'll continue to get better and add pieces, and we're up for that challenge."

Reworking Evero's contract before the season meant the club did so on the heels of the 2024 season, which featured the all-time league record for points allowed in a season, and a group that ranked last in yards and points allowed.

But Morgan and crew were confident in what Evero could do with an improved group, and took to heart their part of the job as well. As a result, as well as Derrick Brown's return from injury, the defense finished the 2025 regular season 15th in scoring defense and 16th in total defense.

"I think if you look at EJ, if you're around him every day, you see the way he works, how smart he is, I believe in his defense. I believe in his philosophy," said Morgan.

"He's really good at developing players. It's my job as well to equip him with the right personnel, and again, it's a patience thing to where we're going to attack those needs, and we're going to get better across the board.

"I think as you see us keep adding talent onto our roster, players on our roster developing, I think you'll see that defense keep ascending."

Reports have surfaced this week that a handful of teams are requesting to interview Evero for head coaching vacancies. Should he take a head coaching job, Morgan offered assurances that a succession plan is in place.

"Obviously, if he gets a job, we're going to have a plan of action and we're going to go from there. But I feel like our personnel, I think it can fit any scheme. So if we need to adjust to a 4-3 or 3-4, if that comes, I feel like the personnel, we'll be able to adapt and adjust really quickly."

Housekeeping Notes

Over the course of a nearly 40-minute press conference, there was plenty for Morgan to address. A few other notes of importance that arose on Tuesday:

— Morgan wanted to add to the offensive line even before Ikem Ekwonu's injury, just to "keep our strengths strong" and stay ahead of a need by developing and creating a succession plan. But for now, "we feel good about our O-line."

— Other than Ekwonu, Morgan doesn't anticipate any major offseason surgeries needed, saying, "maybe a few guys here and there, but nothing really major."

— Receiver Jalen Coker put on a show Saturday night against the Rams, finishing with nine receptions for 134 yards and a touchdown. Despite not playing in the first six games while rehabbing a quad injury, Coker finished his second season with 33 receptions for 394 yards, three touchdowns, and a two-point conversion. Canales told reporters on Sunday that Coker had solidified himself as a starter for next season.

"I'm really proud of Jalen, just another guy that has been through adversity with injuries and has overcome it, and a credit to him," said Morgan.

Coker, who originally signed as an undrafted free agent out of college, is an exclusive rights free agent this offseason, meaning he will either be offered and accept a contract from the Panthers or not be offered a contract and become a free agent. As to whether that is a short-term deal for now, with an eye on the future, or a long-term deal locked in this offseason, Morgan knows he and executive vice president of football operations Brandt Tilis will have to decide soon.

"Jalen's a prime example of that, just put the work in and he's a resilient guy," continued Morgan. "He came back, and he played great. So, in terms of the contract and stuff like that, again, me and Brandt are talking through timing on when to extend him and give him a deal. That's all stuff we're going to talk about."

— Corner Mike Jackson is under contract for another year. Beyond that, Morgan said he and Tilis will discuss any future deals

"We extended Mike Jack last year, and again, that's something me and Brandt have to talk about. He'll have one year left on his deal this year, so it's something that me and Brandt will talk through, and we'll come up with a strategy."

Jackson finished the year with 23 passes defensed, between the regular and postseason, and four interceptions. Jaycee Horn added eight passes defensed and five interceptions as well.

"You look at Mike Jack and Jaycee, I think arguably one of the top corner duos in the league," bragged Morgan.