Monroe Freeling was inactive Sunday for the Carolina Panthers’ Week 6 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, ending a week in which he had practiced on a limited basis twice but still finished the final injury report as doubtful. The road game in Philadelphia also came with a crowded inactive list for Carolina, and Freeling was not the only lineman the team had to plan around.
Taylor Moton gave the Panthers a lift before kickoff when he was activated from the NFI list on Saturday, leaving Carolina with 11 offensive linemen on the active roster. That mattered on a day when Torricelli Simpkins III and Albert Reese were also inactive, part of a heavier-than-usual list that left the offense thinner up front for the Panthers Vs Eagles matchup.
For Freeling, the question was not whether he had been involved in the week. It was. He got in two limited practices and still did not make it to game day, which is the kind of roster decision that usually says more about caution than comfort. The Panthers also had AJ Dillon, Ja'Tavion Sanders, Haynes King as an emergency third quarterback, and TeRah Edwards inactive, while Tershawn Wharton and Trevor Etienne were back and Anthony Tyus III and Robert Rochell were elevated from the practice squad.
That mix gives the Panthers a usable roster, but not a clean one, as they tried to handle a Week 6 trip to Philadelphia in silver, white and black. Dave Canales has used run-pass options in the offense for years, and with that many moving parts on the inactive list, the depth chart mattered as much as the matchup itself. What Sunday showed is that the Panthers could get Moton back, but still had to go into the game without Freeling, and that is the hole they will have to live with until the next turn of the schedule.
