The Panthers have placed WR Wallace Wright on the Injured Reserve List with a shoulder injury.  This might hurt the Panthers on special teams which is an area that Wright excels in.  He has played in 66 games in his NFL career and he has 66 tackles, mostly on special teams.  He also has caught 8 passes for 108 yards (13.5 avg) and he has returned 2 kickoffs for 31 yards (15.5 avg) in his NFL career to date.  This isn’t a big loss but the Panthers wish they would have had him in 2010.

The Panthers have lost 27-year old starting linebacker Thomas Davis for the year after he re-tore his right ACL in OTAs.  It was the second time in only seven months that Davis has torn his right ACL.  He played in 7 games for the Panthers last season and he had 61 tackles, defensed 5 passes, had 1.5 sacks and he had 2 interceptions.  In his five years with the Panthers, Davis has played in 69 games in which he has 390 tackles, 22 passes defensed, 11 sacks, 8 forced fumbles and 3 interceptions.  This is a big blow to the Panthers who were counting on a healthy Davis to boost the defense.

30-year old WR Steve Smith’s season is over due to a broken forearm.  Smith played in 15 games for the Panthers this season and he caught 65 passes for 982 yards (15.1 avg) with 7 TD grabs and he also carried the ball 5 times for 22 yards (4.4 ypc).  Smith will be missed big time this weekend against the Saints.  Kenny Moore will start in Smith’s place this weekend.  He has played in 11 games for the Panthers this season and he has caught 6 passes for 59 yards (9.8 avg).

The Panthers have placed 34-year old QB Jake Delhomme on the Injured Reserve List ending his season because of a broken finger.  Delhomme played in 11 games for the Panthers this season and he completed 201 of 377 passes (53.3%) for 2,015 yards with 8 TD passes and 18 INTs (59.4 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 17 times for 60 yards (3.5 ypc) this year.  Delhomme will have to fight next training camp for his starting job especially if Matt Moore finishes the year strong.

The Panthers will be without 23-year old OT Jeff Otah for the rest of the year due to a knee injury.  Otah played in 13 games (all starts) for the Panthers.  In his two years with the Panthers, Otah has played in 25 games (all starts).  The Panthers have to be a little discouraged that Otah has not proven that he can handle a whole season yet physically.  But, he is a solid football player and they will miss him big time the last three weeks of the year.   Geoff Schwartz will replace Otah in the starting line-up.  He has played in 13 games (0 starts) this season for the Panthers.