Latest news with #IkemEkwonu
USA Today
26-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Panthers to exercise LT Ikem Ekwonu's 5th-year option
Panthers to exercise LT Ikem Ekwonu's 5th-year option The Carolina Panthers closed up their 2025 NFL draft by dropping some news on one of their picks from the 2022 NFL draft. After making their final selection in the sixth round of Saturday's proceedings, president of football operations and general manager Dan Morgan announced that the team plans on exercising the fifth-year option on starting left tackle Ikem Ekwonu. Ekwonu was Carolina's first-round pick, and sixth overall, from 2022. "We are gonna pick up Ickey's fifth-year option, just to kinda get that out of the way," Morgan stated. "I just notified him and figured I'd get it out of the way before I talk to you guys." Ekwonu has started each of his 49 career games on Carolina's blindside. 2024 marked the 24-year-old's best pro campaign, at least according to Pro Football Focus—as he earned career-highs in overall offensive grade (71.7) and run-blocking grade (80.5) while posting a 95.9-percent efficiency rate in pass protection. Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
USA Today
15-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Panthers taking their time deciding on LT Ikem Ekwonu's 5th-year option
Panthers taking their time deciding on LT Ikem Ekwonu's 5th-year option The Carolina Panthers aren't in a hurry to make the obvious decision on starting left tackle Ikem Ekwonu. May 2 will be the final day where teams can officially exercise the fifth-year options on their 2022 first-rounds picks. And when it comes to Ekwonu's future, the Panthers feel like they don't have to get that paperwork in right away. "We're just taking our time with that," president of football operations and general manager Dan Morgan said on Tuesday. "There's no rush. We still have, I think it's May 2nd. So we're not rushing that. We're taking our time, and we'll have a plan in place." Carolina selected Ekwonu, a Matthews, N.C. native and North Carolina State University standout, with the sixth overall pick in 2022. In the three seasons since, he's started each of his 49 games for the team on their blindside. 2024 marked Ekwonu's best pro campaign, at least according to Pro Football Focus. The 24-year-old earned career-highs in his overall offensive grade (71.7) and his run-blocking grade (80.5) while posting a 95.9-percent efficiency rate in pass protection. Given Ekwonu's performance and the value of the left tackle position, the Panthers should be expected to trigger that fifth-year option in the coming weeks. Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
