CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Panthers will open the regular season without both starting offensive tackles.
But that hasn't dampened general manager Dan Morgan's enthusiasm or confidence.
He thinks the team has the depth to stay competitive until they return.
Carolina is looking to build off last season's momentum when the franchise snapped a seven-year playoff drought and won the NFC South — albeit with a losing record (8-9).
Morgan said things are headed in the right direction after years of struggles.
“If you look at our roster, I think our depth has gotten a lot better, our talent has gotten better and the culture in the locker room and in the building is in a really good place, " Morgan said Wednesday as the team's veteran players reported to training camp.
That depth will be tested early on.
Left tackle Ickey Ekwonu is still recovering from a ruptured patellar tendon he sustained in Carolina's 34-31 wild-card loss to the Los Angeles Rams in January. The No. 6 overall pick in the draft in 2022 is expected to miss multiple games, but Morgan said he's optimistic he'll be back at some point this season.
On Tuesday, Carolina ruled out right tackle Taylor Moton for the start of the season after doctors discovered a blood clot in his lung last month. He could miss a few games, but the team's bigger concern is his overall health following the scare.
In the meantime, the Panthers have a huge void up front.
Moton and Ekwonu have started a combined 192 games. Moton has been a reliable starter for nine seasons; Ekwonu four.
So what happens next?
The plans are to start the season with veteran free agent pickup Rasheed Walker from Green Bay at left tackle and first-round draft pick Monroe Freeling out of Georgia on the other side, according to Morgan.
The Panthers had planned to bring along Freeling a little slower, but Moton's injury changed all that.
The Panthers also re-signed versatile offensive lineman Brady Christensen, who can play both tackle spots.
“I think that is why depth, it just matters so much in this league," Morgan said. “Drafting Monroe and taking the best player available (at No. 19), it happened to be a tackle, has worked out really well for us. ... We feel really good about him, We are confident in him and I know he is going to attack it and be out there competing.”
Morgan expects Moton will serve as a valuable mentor for Freeling while he works his way back.
“I think we’ll be covered there,” Morgan said. “I know T-Mo will definitely support Monroe there at right tackle and teach him all he knows. So, yeah, we feel good about it.”
There is a noticeable change in confidence in Charlotte.
Morgan has been cautious about making any proclamations regarding how long it would take for the Panthers to return to being a consistent playoff contender after undertaking a rebuild in 2024. For the past two years he's preached patience, insisting the team would not rush things and saying are no shortcuts to success.
On Wednesday, Morgan raised the bar on expectations for this upcoming season.
“We’re never going to shy away from expectations,” Morgan said. “We have high expectations ourselves, in the locker room, in the building. Our ultimate goal is to win a Super Bowl, to bring a championship here to the Carolinas, in this city, and in this building, a Super Bowl trophy.”
The team placed Ekwonu and defensive tackle Tershawn Wharton on the physically unable to perform list, while defensive tackle Bobby Brown and two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jaycee Horn are on the non-football injury list. Moton is on the non-football illness list.
Morgan said Horn's absence should be “a matter of days, so nothing long term there" after he cut his foot while running without shoes.
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FILE - Carolina Panthers general manager Dan Morgan looks on before an NFL football game between the Carolina Panthers and the New Orleans Saints on Nov. 9, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman, File)
Tesla said Wednesday that its profits fell last quarter as the car company run by Elon Musk shoveled more money into research and development, cutting into profits from a sharp increase in vehicle sales.
The Austin, Texas, company reported second-quarter net income of $1.11 billion, or 32 cents per share. Excluding certain items, earnings were 33 cents per share, well short of the 53 cents per share forecast by Wall Street analysts, according to FactSet.
Revenue rose 26% to $28.24 billion, beating analysts’ forecast of $26.42 billion.
While the core car business had a solid quarter, Tesla is now focused on building out the infrastructure and AI software that underpins its robotaxis and robotics businesses, which Musk has said are the future of the company. And doing so requires a lot more spending.
Research and development spending surged about 49% from a year earlier to $2.37 billion — higher than its been going back at least four quarters.
“We’re investing a lot in growing the core business and really preparing for the future,” Musk said during a conference call with Wall Street analysts, promising that the spending will yield “incredible returns.”
CFO Vaibhav Taneja told analysts that the company expects capital expenditures will increase further in the second half of this year, driving full-year spending to more than $25 billion.
Taneja also forecast that spending on capital expenditures will continue growing for the next “2 to 3 years,” as the company seeks to expand its fleet of robotaxis, add AI compute infrastructure and build more production capacity for its Optimus humanoid robot, among several other products.
Tesla shares fell 4.1% in after-hours trading shortly. The stock ended the regular trading session 1.3% lower and is down just under 17% this year.
Earlier this month, Tesla reported that it delivered 480,216 cars in the second quarter, a 25% increase from the same period last year and its second straight quarterly gain. The sales also exceeded analysts’ expectations, according to a FactSet survey.
Tesla’s improving sales this year mark a big turnaround from a year ago, when many Europeans refused to buy the company’s cars because of Musk’s embrace of far-right political candidates in elections there.
The vast majority of the company’s vehicle deliveries last quarter were comprised of its Model Y crossover SUV and Model 3 sedan. Tesla rolled out less expensive versions of both models last year in hopes of boosting sales. It also cut the cost of leasing and loans in Europe.
Sales were also helped by a surge of EV buying in general in Europe as gas and diesel prices have risen due to the Iran war.
Just a few months ago, Tesla reported sales had fallen in 2025 for a second year in a row and it had to yield its crown as the world’s largest EV maker to China’s BYD.
Tesla's EV sales accounted for most of the company’s overall revenue, but the company got a boost from its energy generation and battery storage business, which posted revenue of $3.14 billion, a 13% gain compared to the second quarter last year.
The company also benefited from increased subscriptions for its driver assistance feature, available in the U.S., called Full Self-Driving (Supervised). The number of FSD subscribers has now reached nearly 1.5 million globally.
Tesla said it has now rolled out its robotaxi service to seven major metro areas in the U.S., and that it it expects production on its Optimus humanoid robot to begin later this year.
The company has also been investing in building new battery factories and in the infrastructure needed to produce its Tesla Semi and Cybercab.
The company noted that it has begun production of the Cybercab at a factory in Texas, and that the Tesla Semi is on track for production this year at a factory in Nevada.
Tesla executives didn't offer more specifics on how many robotaxis or Cybercabs will be on the road, nor how soon.
Musk noted that the company needs more time to test the Cybercab chassis and doesn't want to rush the expansion of robotaxis, saying he prefers to take a cautious approach.
“We’re working on what we believe is the most ambitious buildout of advanced infrastructure manufacturing capacity ever in history,” he said. “Our goals are very ambitious for robotaxi, but we do need to be cautious about causing any accidents or causing any harm to anyone."
FILE - A sign for Tesla is displayed at a facility on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
FILE - A Tesla vehicle is seen at a Tesla facility Wednesday, April 15, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
