The Carolina Panthers are bringing back a familiar face ahead of Week 3 of the 2026 NFL season.
They’ve signed linebacker Maema Njongmeta, according to the NFL’s official transaction report from Wednesday.
Njongmeta will not be in his first stint with Carolina, so he should be somewhat familiar with the coaching staff and how things are done.
He’s slated to join the practice squad initially, but he does have NFL regular season experience.
The Panthers are 1-1 and coming off a Week 2 win, so they’re trying to get on a roll going forward and chase another NFC South Division title.
Who is Maema Njongmeta?
Njongmeta is a 25-year old, 6-foot tall linebacker who now is on the Panthers’ practice squad.
He was born in Cameroon and moved to the United States when he was a young child.
He then grew up in Illinois, where he became a promising football recruit with offers from Iowa State, Tulane, Navy and Wisconsin.
Njongmeta chose the Badgers, where he played from 2019 through 2023, developing into a third-team All-Big Ten selection.
In the 2024 NFL Draft, Njongmeta went undrafted, but he signed afterward with the Cincinnati Bengals.
He made their opening roster for the 2024 season and was with the Bengals either on the roster or the practice squad until the middle of September in 2025. That’s when the Panthers signed him off Cincinnati’s practice squad.
Carolina cut Njongmeta at the end of the 2026 preseason, and he remained a free agent for a couple weeks until the Panthers just picked him up again.
He’s got an impressive wingspan, at 6-foot-6, and runs the 40-yard dash in 4.80 seconds.
Njongmeta appeared in all 17 games for the Bengals in 2024 and finished with 13 tackles and two fumble recoveries.
He then played in 15 games for the Panthers in 2025 and had 10 tackles and a fumble forced.
The Panthers have been dealing with a number of injuries to the defense in the early going, so they could certainly view Njongmeta as a potential elevation from the practice squad at some point sooner rather than later.
Panthers Week 3
Carolina has another winnable game in front of it in Week 3. They travel to Cleveland to take on the Browns in their home opener.
The Browns, and QB Deshaun Watson, are coming off a shocking road win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Baker Mayfield in Week 2 that included a lengthy weather delay.
The Panthers are coming off a resounding 34-3 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
This is a key chance for Carolina to improve to 2-1. They’ll return home in Week 4 to host the Detroit Lions, and then they have strong teams on the schedule after that including the Eagles, Buccaneers, Packers and Broncos.
Most of Carolina’s divisional action doesn’t come until later in the season, so they’ve got to take care of some of these out-of-division foes first.
Panthers Sign Maema Njongmeta for Week 3