Here at Cat Scratch Reader we have counted down the final 100 days leading up to the Carolina Panthers season opener by for at least the past ten years. We’ve always done this by highlighting the current player on the roster whose jersey number matches the day on the countdown. This year, we decided to change that up a bit by counting down our own list of the Top 100 Panthers of all time. This does not correspond to jersey number, does not need to be somebody who wore a jersey, and will in no way be controversial.
#26. Shaq Thompson
Shaq Thompson’s selection in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft was somewhat controversial. The Panthers already had a dynamic linebacker duo in Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis. The “controversy” was magnified by the fact that Davis was the one who announced the pick, leading many pundits to claim he announced the selection of his own replacement. The similarities were definitely there: an athletic former safety turned linebacker who was a tackling machine in college, they were even around the same frame at 6’1”, 230 lbs and posted eerily similar forty times at their respective combines (4.64 for Thompson and 4.66 for Davis). Thompson’s dynamism was on display his junior year as he played running back for the Washington Huskies as well as linebacker. He ran the ball over 450 times and averaged over seven yards per carry, showing an athleticism and understanding of play design on both sides of the ball.
For the next three seasons, the Panthers had one heck of a linebacking corps. As Thomas Davis began to show signs of decline due to age, Thompson began to really get a feel for the professional game. The final year of the big three at linebacker for the Panthers in 2018 saw Thompson (and Davis for that matter) put together solid but unspectacular seasons. The Panthers decided not to resign Davis, giving Thompson a bigger role in the defense and signing him to a four year, $54.2 million extension. January of 2020 saw the surprise retirement of Luke Kuechly, and Thompson struggled. While he did rack up some decent stats, his overall performance (and that of the entire defense) took an understandable dip. During the 2022 season, it seemed Thompson had really come into his own as the new leader of the Panthers defense. He tallied a career high 135 tackles and earned a run-defense grade from PFF of over 90. Unfortunately for Shaq and the Panthers, major injuries derailed this turnaround. Thompson broke his fibula in Week 2 of 2023 and tore his Achilles in Week 4 of 2024. Shaq signed with the Buffalo Bills that offseason after the Panthers did not resign him. He did play 12 games for the Bills, including six starts.
Shaq Thompson is yet another player who falls in the “what could have been” category that has plagued this franchise. Despite losing his best seasons to injury, he still belongs in the hallowed halls of Panthers linebacker greats that have come through Charlotte over the years. His consistent run defense may not have garnered awards and accolades, but his overall dependability over his first eight seasons (before the major injuries) made him a consistent force on the Panthers defense. And with the Panthers desperately needing more linebacker help this season, who knows? Maybe a reunion could be in the cards.