Panthers waiver claim: Carolina took full advantage of having the No. 1 slot to add a series of players

The Carolina Panthers didn’t waste the opportunity with a top waiver claim following roster cuts. Because the franchise finished with the worst record in 2023, they were No. 1 on the waiver wire, meaning they had the first chance at the pool of waived players during final roster trimming on Tuesday. In all, Carolina came away with six players off waivers.

Defensive back Shemar Bartholomew was acquired from the New York Jets, defensive back Tariq Castro-Fields from the Washington Commanders, defensive back Keenan Isaacs from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, linebacker Jarrett Kingston from the San Francisco 49ers, and defensive end Jamie Sheriff was acquired from the Seattle Seahawks along with linebacker John Rhatigan.

Rhatigan went undrafted after getting out of the Army in 2021 and spent the past four seasons with Seattle. Of the group, he has the most NFL experience, appearing in 36 games and totaling 17 tackles. Castro-Fields was a sixth-round draft choice of the San Francisco 49ers out of Penn State in 2022 but spent the past three seasons in Washington. In 10 career games, he has four tackles and has spent most of his playing time on special teams.

Meanwhile, Kingston is the Niners’ sixth-round pick out of USC, Sheriff is a player out of South Alabama, and Bartholomew also went undrafted last year after playing college ball at Georgia Southern.

To make room for these new signings, the Panthers waived wide receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette, guard Cade Mays, cornerback D’Shawn Jamison, defensive tackle Jaden Peavy, as well as undrafted rookies Jalen Coker and Damani Richardson.