3 Panthers greats named to ESPN's All Quarter Century Team
3 Panthers greats named to ESPN's All Quarter Century Team
A few Carolina Panthers greats have left their mark here in the 21st century.
ESPN analytics gurus Aaron Schatz and Seth Walder have compiled their "NFL All Quarter Century Team," highlighting the league's best players over the last 25 years. Included on the 53-man squad are three very familiar names to Panthers fans, beginning with running back Christian McCaffrey.
Walder writes:
As the best receiving back of the past 25 years, McCaffrey needs to be included on this roster. He averages 47 receiving yards per game, which is more than anyone else with at least 500 carries during that span.
But he's not only a receiving back. What makes McCaffrey special is that he has maintained 4.7 yards per carry over his career, 14th-best among running backs this quarter century.
One of those years (2019) saw McCaffrey become just the third back in NFL history to amass 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards over a single season. McCaffrey, who was traded to the San Francisco 49ers in the middle of the 2022 campaign, still stands as the franchise's fourth-leading rusher (3,980 yards) and sixth-leading receiver (3,292).
Joining McCaffrey are the two greatest defensive players in team history, edge rusher Julius Peppers and linebacker Luke Kuechly. Walder notes the following of the latter:
Kuechly's career burned so hot over its short eight-year span. The only one of those seasons in which he did not reach the Pro Bowl and earn first- or second-team All-Pro honors was 2012 ... when he won Defensive Rookie of the Year. Kuechly's 9.2 tackles per game and 0.15 interceptions per game are the second and third most of any linebacker in this century, respectively.
Unfortunately, Kuechly did not follow Peppers' path in becoming a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer earlier this year. He does, however, have a head-start for the next group—as he's already been named a finalist for the 2026 class.
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