Panthers Offensive Line Takes a Hit

The Carolina Panthers cut three players last week to clear salary cap room, and it seems as if released guard-tackle Jeremy Bridges started a trend for the Panthers. Following the release of Bridges, two other offensive linemen for Carolina have exited the team in the last week after becoming free agents, leaving a gaping hole in the Panthers’ lineup. The departure of both center-guard Geoff Hangartner and tackle Frank Omiyale means that all three of the Panthers’ top backup OL heavyweights are no longer with the team, also leaving the team with the huge task of replacing them in the upcoming months.

Following his first four NFL seasons with the Panthers after plucked out of Texas A&M by Carolina in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL Draft, Hangartner will now call Buffalo home, as he recently struck a four-year deal with the Bills starting in 2009. Omiyale, on the other hand, came to Carolina after waived by the Falcons in 2007 but is now heading straight to Chicago to play for Lovie Smith and the Bears next season.

While the Panthers still have all their starting linemen for next season, the team’s depth (or lack thereof) is a troubling aspect. The only two backups Carolina currently has hold of are center-guard Mackenzy Bernadeau and tackle Geoff Schwartz, both of whom were selected in the seventh round of last year’s NFL Draft and who haven’t yet seen play time. Stay tuned to see how Carolina will fill its OL void!

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