Carolina Panthers second-year receiver Jalen Coker spent the last day of the NFL regular season with his girlfriend at his house in Charlotte watching the Atlanta Falcons play the New Orleans Saints and rooting for an Atlanta win.
The Panthers’ loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the day before meant Carolina needed some help to secure its first NFC South Division title in a decade.
The Falcons delivered with a 19-17 triumph and the Panthers, who won a tiebreaker for the division title, will open the NFL playoffs at home against the Los Angeles Rams at 4:30 p.m. on Jan 10.
“It was an interesting position to be in,” Coker, the former Holy Cross star, said in a phone interview this week, “the whole logistics of it, but I was confident we’d be playing this week. I don’t think my mindset ever changed even after not winning the game in Tampa. I always prepared like we were going to be playing this game.”
The Panthers are in the postseason for the first time since 2017 and at 8-9 are the fifth team since 2010 to make the playoffs with a sub-.500 record.
“Personally, (making the playoffs) is an awesome accomplishment and it’s an amazing accomplishment for us as a team,” Coker said. “I’m looking forward to putting it all on the line for my team and for my guys (against the Rams). As a community, this is huge. We haven’t been here in a while. We’re really proud of the position we’re in. We’re proud of the work we’ve put in and we’re ready to get after it.”
Coker, Holy Cross’ all-time leader in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, scored his first touchdown of 2025 in the Panthers’ 31-28 win over the Rams on Nov. 30.
Coming out of HC, Coker signed with the Panthers as an undrafted free agent and began the 2024 season on the team’s practice squad. Patience, perseverance and hard work earned him a spot on the active roster by Week 4.
He wrapped up his NFL rookie season with 42 receptions for 478 yards and 2 touchdowns, and he was obviously eager to build on those numbers this year.
A quadriceps injury, however, sidelined Coker for the first six weeks of this season.
“It was not great,” Coker said, “but life is all about how you react to things. I chose to respond well and buy into my preparation, lean into the staff we have here and trust them to get me back to where I wanted to be and do whatever I can to make an impact on this team.
“There was never a doubt I would be back,” Coker said. “It was just a matter of when based on the severity of the injury.”
Coker made his return Week 7 at the New York Jets.
“It was very, very rewarding,” Coker said. “It was the culmination of hard work, not just my own, but the belief of my coaches, teammates, training staff and nutrition staff to put me on the right track to get me back out there on Sundays.”
In the Jan. 3 loss to the Bucs, the 6-foot-3, 213-pound Coker played his most snaps of the season and in the fourth quarter outjumped a Tampa defender in the end zone to reel in an 8-yard TD pass from quarterback Bryce Young.
Coker finished with a season-high six receptions for 47 yards.
“It’s a really big time for Jalen,” Panthers coach Dave Canales said in his Jan. 5 press conference. “He’s been stepping up and making plays for us, and so we looked at last week as an opportunity to get him out there a little bit more in 12 personnel, 13 personnel. Get him out there just because of the way he’s producing and give him more opportunities.”
On the season, Coker has 33 catches for 394 yards and 3 TDs.
Coker, who led FCS with 15 touchdown receptions his 2023 senior season, has been in touch with former HC teammate Luke Newman, a backup rookie guard for the Chicago Bears, a few times during the season.
The Bears open the playoffs against the Packers at 8 p.m. on Jan. 10.
Newman, who played a graduate season at Michigan State, was a sixth-round draft pick of the Bears.
Coker and Newman were four-year teammates at HC.
“I’m proud of where I came from,” Coker said. “The journey I’ve been on and that I’m having proved me right the whole time knowing no matter where I was, I was going to make an impact at this level. I’m just blessed.”
Coker and his Holy Cross coach, Bob Chesney, are in regular contact. Coker was thrilled to see Chesney recently become the new UCLA coach.
“I think that’s huge for him,” Coker said. “He continues to show why he’s such a great coach and continues to win at every level.”
Just like he always did at Fitton Field, Coker will have a large family contingent cheering for him at Bank of America Stadium Saturday afternoon.
“We’re ready to take on the challenge,” Coker said. “We know what it’s going to take to beat a really good team. We’re excited, ready to fill ‘The Bank,’ and put on a show.”
–Contact Jennifer Toland at [email protected]. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @JenTolandTG.
