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In the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft, the Carolina Panthers selected Davidson, N.C. native and West Virginia quarterback Will Grier. And now, three regimes and seven years later, the hometown boy is back.
Grier returned to the Panthers earlier this offseason. The somewhat seasoned 31-year-old signed back with Carolina right before the 2026 draft at the end of April.
When speaking with reporters following Tuesday's session of organized team activities, head coach Dave Canales was asked why he wanted to bring Grier in.
"Will's a guy that I evaluated when he came out, and always loved his game," Canales replied. "Fiery, aggressive, style of play, big arm, accuracy and just played with a lot of energy. And so, I've just kinda followed him and tracked him all along this time—and he's been on a couple of other teams."
Those other teams included the Dallas Cowboys, Cincinnati Bengals, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Chargers and Philadelphia Eagles. Grier picked up those stops after two seasons in Carolina, where he played in just a pair of games during his rookie season.
Now, he's one of four quarterbacks in a room that features starter Bryce Young, undrafted free-agent signee Haynes King and fellow veteran Kenny Pickett—who, per Canales, may have factored into the decision to add Grier.
"Bringing Kenny in—Will and Kenny were together in the QB room in Philly. So bringing some familiarity. And then also just it's always good that you're building that quarterback room, bring guys in with experience who have been exposed to different systems, have seen defenses around the league. So they can add value.
"We're all in there to help Bryce. And the more information, the more people we can bring in to enrich the conversations, the better."
Pickett was signed by the Panthers in early March. He'll likely enter the season as the backup to Young, a spot that belonged to three-time Pro Bowler Andy Dalton for the previous three years.
Grier has yet to appear in a regular-season game in the NFL since his brief two-start stretch for Carolina in 2019.
Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers OTAs: HC Dave Canales explains addition of QB Will Grier
Continue reading...
Grier returned to the Panthers earlier this offseason. The somewhat seasoned 31-year-old signed back with Carolina right before the 2026 draft at the end of April.
When speaking with reporters following Tuesday's session of organized team activities, head coach Dave Canales was asked why he wanted to bring Grier in.
"Will's a guy that I evaluated when he came out, and always loved his game," Canales replied. "Fiery, aggressive, style of play, big arm, accuracy and just played with a lot of energy. And so, I've just kinda followed him and tracked him all along this time—and he's been on a couple of other teams."
Those other teams included the Dallas Cowboys, Cincinnati Bengals, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Chargers and Philadelphia Eagles. Grier picked up those stops after two seasons in Carolina, where he played in just a pair of games during his rookie season.
Now, he's one of four quarterbacks in a room that features starter Bryce Young, undrafted free-agent signee Haynes King and fellow veteran Kenny Pickett—who, per Canales, may have factored into the decision to add Grier.
"Bringing Kenny in—Will and Kenny were together in the QB room in Philly. So bringing some familiarity. And then also just it's always good that you're building that quarterback room, bring guys in with experience who have been exposed to different systems, have seen defenses around the league. So they can add value.
"We're all in there to help Bryce. And the more information, the more people we can bring in to enrich the conversations, the better."
Pickett was signed by the Panthers in early March. He'll likely enter the season as the backup to Young, a spot that belonged to three-time Pro Bowler Andy Dalton for the previous three years.
Grier has yet to appear in a regular-season game in the NFL since his brief two-start stretch for Carolina in 2019.
Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers OTAs: HC Dave Canales explains addition of QB Will Grier
Continue reading...
