CHARLOTTE — The Panthers acquired an option in the return game and an intriguing receiving prospect in a deal with the Chiefs late Monday night.
The Panthers received wide receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette in exchange for a swap of conditional 2025 seventh-rounders.
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Smith-Marsette was second in the league in receiving yards this preseason, with nine receptions for 195 yards and two touchdowns in three games.
He averaged 21.67 yards per reception, with a pair of 40-plus yarders, while playing with Chiefs backup quarterback Blaine Gabbert.
Originally a fifth-round pick of the Vikings out of Iowa, he has also spent time with the Bears in 2022.
In 16 career games with the Vikings and Bears, he has six catches for 131 yards and two touchdowns (21.8 per reception).
The Panthers have some short-term injury issues at receiver (with DJ Chark Jr., Terrace Marshall Jr., and Laviska Shenault Jr. missing the preseason finale) and were looking for some help in the return game as well.
The Panthers have Arizona's 2025 seventh-rounder as a result of last year's trade that sent wide receiver Chosen Anderson to the Cardinals.
The deal moves the Panthers' roster back to 80, meaning they'll have to make 27 moves on Tuesday to get to the 53-man roster limit by the 4 p.m. deadline.
