Panthers D-lineman Tershawn Wharton undergoes neck surgery

Carolina Panthers coach Dave Canales confirmed Monday that defensive lineman Tershawn Wharton recently underwent neck surgery.

Wharton is expected to begin trainingcamp on the physically unable to perform list. Canales said Wharton was "recovering great" from his surgery, but the coach didn't have a timetable for when he might be able to play.

"Basically, it was about a week and a half ago, [he] just was feeling a little bit of discomfort and went in and talked to [Panthers VP of player health and performance] Denny [Kellington], and Denny was like, 'This is something we should take a look at,'" Canales told reporters, according to the team's website. "They found some things that needed to be addressed from a surgical standpoint.

"Obviously, with the timetable of the season and all those things, this is something that needs to be done now, and he's recovering great, and we'll just take it week by week and see where he's at."

Wharton, 27, signed with the Panthers last year after spending five seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs. He was limited to nine games last season because of injuries and finished with 36 tackles and two sacks.

The Panthers selected defensive tackle Lee Hunter in the second round of the 2026 draft, adding to their depth behind star defensive lineman Derrick Brown and nose tackleBobby Brown III. The Panthers also picked defensive tackle Cam Jackson in the fifth round of the 2025 draft.

"Lee, Cam Jackson, these guys that we've brought into our program are going to really need to step up for the guys in different roles," Canales said.