Jalen Coker isn’t known for being a deep-ball threat for the Carolina Panthers.
On Sunday, though, to open the 2026 NFL season? Call Coker a speedster down the field.
In the first half of the season’s first game, Bryce Young dropped back, looked toward the left sideline, and let it fly.
Coker was running a go route, and he’d gotten behind the defense.
The throw hit him right in stride, and it was a 51-yard touchdown.
Just how the Panthers drew it up:
Bryce Young DEEP BALL to Jalen Coker š„
51 yd TD š¤Æ
(via @nfl) pic.twitter.com/ZVzQd9152r
ā Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 13, 2026
Why This Worked
One of the reasons this was so successful is because of the fact that Coker isn’t a deep-ball guy.
When a player mostly runs shorter routes, defensive backs start to guess that that’s what’s coming next.
So if Coker gives even a little feint that he might be going short, and then goes long? Good luck.
He’s still an impressive athlete at 6-foot-3 and 213 pounds. He runs well. He can make plays down the field.
And this shows he might just do that more this year.
Jalen Coker’s Longest Catch
This wasn’t the longest catch of Coker’s career, though.
As a rookie, he made an 83-yard grab, which pretty much by itself helped improve his yards per catch that season to 14.9.
Last season was more of the expectation for Coker at 11.9 yards per catch.
If he starts catching 51-yarders every week, though, Coker will be that much more of a game-changing player for the Panthers.
Young looked great in the first half, too, so this has a lot of potential for Carolina.
They were NFC South champions last season despite going 8-9. They’d love a winning record this season, of course, and they’d also enjoy another division title.
Coker has them setting the tone to try and pull off a Week 1 upset and make that happen.
Panthers’ Jalen Coker Announces Presence in Big Way in Week 1