The Panthers have lost 28-year old WR Legedu Naanee for the rest of the season due to a broken foot.  Naanee played in 15 games for the Panthers this year and he caught 44 passes for 467 yards (10.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 69 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has caught 107 passes for 1,213 yards (11.3 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Brandon LaFell will get more throws this weekend against the Saints with Naanee on the shelf, and he should do a good job.

The Panthers have placed 23-year old cornerback Captain Munnerlyn on the Injured Reserve List, ending his season due to a hamstring injury.  Munnerlyn played in 14 games for the Panthers last year and he had 58 tackles, 2 sacks, 5 passes defensed, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery and 1 tackle for a loss.  Munnerlyn has now played in 45 games in his first three years with the Panthers and he has 147 tackles, 3 interceptions (one returned for a TD), 18 passes defensed, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 1 tackle for a loss.  The Panthers are really going to miss Munnerlyn next weekend against the Saints in the season finale.

The Panthers have lost 25-year old linebacker Jason Phillips for the rest of the season due to a calf injury.  Phillips played in 4 games for the Panthers this year and he had 4 tackles.  Phillips has now played in 13 games in his first two years in the NFL and he has 9 tackles.  It will be interesting to see if the Panthers bring back Phillips in 2012, as they are going to look to revamp on the defensive side of the football.

The Panthers have lost rookie DTs Sione Fua (hamstring) and Terrell McClain (knee) for the rest of the season.  Fua played in 12 games for the Panthers this year and he had 9 tackles.  McClain played in 12 games for the Panthers this year and he had 19 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 1 sack.  The Panthers took Fua & McClain in the 3rd round of the 2011 NFL Draft.  They were in line to see more P.T. the rest of the year, so this will hurt both of them.

The Panthers have placed 26-year old LB Thomas Williams on the Injured Reserve List due to a neck injury.  Williams played in 7 games for the Panthers this year and he had 13 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 2 passes defensed.  He has now played in 15 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 14 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 2 passes defensed and 1 tackle for a loss.  This will hurt the Panthers’ depth at LB going forward.

The Panthers have lost 25-year old OT Jeff Otah for the rest of the season due to back and knee injuries.  He has been placed on the Injured Reserve List.  Otah played in 4 games (all starts) for the Panthers this year.  He has played in 29 games (all starts) in his first four years with the Panthers.  The Panthers have re-signed 30-year old G/T Reggie Wells who was with them earlier in the year.  Wells has played in 112 games (91 starts) in his first 9 years in the NFL.

The Panthers have lost 27-year old OLB Omar Gaither for the next 2-4 weeks with a sprained left MCL.  Gaither played in all 5 games for the Panthers so far this year and he has 8 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  25-year old Jason Williams will take over for Gaither until he’s ready to return to action.  Williams has played in 3 games for the Panthers so far this year and he has 13 tackles.

The Panthers have lost 28-year old LB Thomas Davis for the season for the second year in a row to a torn ACL.  Davis played in both games for the Panthers this year and he had 12 tackles and 1 fumble recovery.  He has now played in 71 games in his first 7 years with the Panthers and he has 402 tackles, 27 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks, 8 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries, 22 passes defensed and 3 interceptions.  The Panthers are really hurting at linebacker now as they have already lost Jon Beason and Thomas Davis for the year.

The Carolina Panthers have lost 26-year old middle linebacker Jon Beason for the rest of the 2011 season due to a torn ACL.  He had 4 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss against the Cardinals last Sunday.  Beason has now played in 65 games in his first 5 years in the NFL and he has 545 tackles, 27 tackles for a loss, 4 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries, 29 passes defensed and 8 interceptions.  This is a HUGE blow to the Panthers’ D as Beason is one of the best inside linebackers in the entire NFL.

The Panthers have placed 25-year old G/T Garry Williams on the Injured Reserve List due to a fractured ankle.  He played in 16 games (11 starts) for the Panthers last year.  Williams has now played in 23 games (11 starts) in his first two years with the Panthers.  This is a big blow to the Panthers who are losing offensive linemen at an alarming rate.