Carolina Panthers lose their starting center for the season

An MRI revealed Sunday evening that Matt Paradis tore his ACL in Sunday’s 24-6 loss to the New England Patriots, a source with direct knowledge of the situation said.

He will miss the rest of the regular season.

Panthers coach Matt Rhule confirmed the news on Monday.

Paradis suffered in the injury with 9:48 left in the first quarter. The Panthers ran the ball with Christian McCaffrey up the middle and Paradis appeared to get caught up in the pile.

Patriots and Panthers players immediately motioned to the sideline for trainers to come to the field. Paradis had to be helped to the sideline.

“Matt is a special guy,” Rhule said. “Really heartbroken for him.”

The Panthers signed Paradis in the 2019 offseason and he has not missed a game in three seasons. This may have been the final game Paradis has played with the Panthers. His contract expires in the offseason.

The Panthers have two options at center for the rest of the season. They can start backup Sam Tecklenburg, who played most of Sunday, or Pat Elflein, if he is healthy next week. Elflein, who plays guard, can slot in at center.

But Elflein is still recovering a groin injury he suffered in Week 2. The Panthers added him to the 53-man roster earlier this week but he was inactive for Sunday’s game.

Rhule said Monday he expects Elflein to be ready for this week and would likely be the starter at center.

Paradis wasn’t the only player to be injured. Starting left tackle Cameron Erving suffered an injury in the third quarter and did not return. Defensive end Brian Burns suffered an injury in the fourth quarter and did not return.

Panthers coach Matt Rhule said he wasn’t sure of their statuses.

Linebacker Haason Reddick said he spoke to Burns after the game, and said he’ll be all right.

This story was originally published November 7, 2021 at 6:29 PM with the headline "Carolina Panthers lose their starting center for the season."

Jonathan M. Alexander

The Charlotte Observer

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Jonathan M. Alexander is a native of Charlotte. He began covering the Carolina Panthers for the Observer in July 2020 after working at the N&O for seven years, where he covered a variety of beats, including UNC basketball and football, Duke basketball, recruiting, K-12 schools, public safety and town government. Support my work with a digital subscription