There’s going to be quite a few Carolina Panthers legends on next season’s Pro Football Hall of Fame ballot.
With the 2025 class officially announced on Thursday night, we can now look forward to 2026—where a pair of old friends will get their initial crack at taking up residence in Canton, Ohio. Among the notable players with first-year eligibility are tight end Greg Olsen and linebacker Thomas Davis.
Olsen, who was traded to the Panthers in 2011 for a third-round pick, played nine of his 14 NFL seasons in Carolina. Up through the 2019 campaign, he reeled in 524 receptions for 6,463 yards and 39 touchdowns.
When adding in his four years in Chicago and his one in Seattle, Olsen finished with 8,683 receiving yards—the seventh-most all-time by a tight end. The two-time second-team All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowler was also the first tight end in league history to record three straight seasons of 1,000 receiving yards.
Davis was selected by the Panthers with the 14th overall pick of the 2005 NFL draft. He’d become the first player to ever successfully return from three ACL tears, all of which occurred to the same knee.
The setbacks didn’t spell the end for Davis, who played his best ball after the injuries. Davis went on to earn three Pro Bowl nods and a first-team All-Pro selection, beginning in his age 32 season.
Both Olsen and Davis were key presences for Carolina’s three straight NFC South titles from 2013 and 2015, a journey that ended with the franchise’s second-ever Super Bowl appearance.
They will be under consideration alongside former teammates Luke Kuechly and Steve Smith Sr., both of whom fell short as finalists for the 2025 class.
