Will Grier Calls It a Career Before Panthers Camp. Here’s What It Means for Carolina’s QB Room.

Will Grier is done. The Carolina Panthers announced Wednesday that the veteran quarterback is retiring, ending his NFL journey just weeks before the team reports for training camp later this month.

Grier’s decision comes a little over two months after Carolina brought him back on a deal in April 2026. It was something of a homecoming for the Davidson, North Carolina native. But instead of competing for a roster spot, he’ll walk away from the game entirely.

Carolina originally drafted Grier in the third round back in 2019 out of West Virginia. He had a monster college career with the Mountaineers, posting back-to-back 30-touchdown seasons and leading the Big 12 in yards per game at 351.3. That production shot him up draft boards ahead of the 2019 cycle.

His NFL career never matched that hype, though. Grier started two games for the Panthers as a rookie and lost both. He threw zero touchdowns and four interceptions. That was basically it for him in Carolina the first time around.

From there, Grier became a journeyman. He bounced through the Cowboys, Bengals, Patriots, Chargers and Eagles from 2021 to 2024. He eventually circled back to Dallas in 2024 and stayed for the 2025 season before Carolina called again this spring. Now the QB room looks a lot different than it did a few months ago.

Depth chart after Grier’s exit

Bryce Young remains the undeniable starter. He took real strides last season and helped snap Carolina’s decade-long playoff drought, which was a huge deal for a franchise that has been wandering in the wilderness for years. Dave Canales is back as head coach, and the offense has some actual momentum for once.

Kenny Pickett, the former first-round pick from Pittsburgh, is the No. 2. He came over in a trade last year and has settled into a backup role. Undrafted rookie Haynes King out of Georgia Tech is the third quarterback on the depth chart. The Panthers have already confirmed King will start the Hall of Fame game on August 6 against the Arizona Cardinals.

So Carolina goes into camp with three arms but only two that really matter right now. Grier’s retirement doesn’t shake the foundation of the roster, but it does remove a veteran presence who had been around the building before.

Sometimes guys just decide they’re done. Grier had a decent run for a third-round pick who never really found a foothold. He made it eight years in the league one way or another. That’s not nothing.