The NFL season is in full swing, as the league wrapped up Week 3 on Monday evening. Across the league week in and week out, players are elevated onto active rosters consistently as injuries occur that cause teams to make changes.
One former South Carolina player is getting his shot on an active roster as prep for Week 4 begins. That is former Gamecock offensive lineman Torricelli Simpkins III, who was elevated to the Carolina Panthers' active roster on Tuesday:
Panthers add Torricelli Simpkins to the active roster, among other moveshttps://t.co/ftwCihKUlF
— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) September 29, 2026
Simpkins was signed to the Panthers' practice squad on Sept. 1. He has been elevated and is expected to provide some much-needed depth to Carolina's offensive line. Starting left guard Damien Lewis is dealing with an elbow injury, and as a result had to go in-and-out of last week's game against the Cleveland Browns.
The Panthers signing Simpkins is a bit of a homecoming, as the offensive lineman was actually born in Charlotte. Across his last two seasons in the league, he has bounced around the league a bit. He went undrafted during last year's NFL Draft, and signed with the New Orleans Saints as a UDFA in April 2025. He played in 15 games for the Saints last season, including making two starts.
He was waived by New Orleans on Aug. 30, before getting quickly snapped up by Charlotte a couple of days later. The Panthers have a big game ahead of them, as Carolina will host the Detroit Lions during Sunday Night Football in Week 4. Simpkins could potentially see action and help block for quarterback Bryce Young.
The Charlotte, N.C. native spent the first three seasons of his collegiate career at FCS North Carolina Central before transferring to South Carolina ahead of the Gamecocks' 2024 season. He helped lead South Carolina to a 9-4 finish that year, and he started in all 13 games at right guard in Columbia.
He was named a third-team All-SEC lineman during his lone season in Columbia. He made 48 starts across his college career, and earned All-America honors at NC Central.
Sunday night's game between the Panthers and Lions will kick off at 8:20 p.m. ET, and will air live on NBC. The Panthers are looking to get back on track after a 21-18 loss to the Cleveland Browns that dropped the team to 1-2.
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