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Carolina Panthers left tackle Ikem Ekwonu may not be ready for the team’s season-opening game against the Jacksonville Jaguars after he underwent emergency appendectomy surgery last week.
Ekwonu, 24, went to the team facility last weekend complaining of stomach pain. He was checked by the team’s medical staff, who recommended emergency surgery.
Panthers coach Dave Canales told reporters last Wednesday that Ekwonu would be “day-to-day, all the way up until the game.”
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Carolina Panthers offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu (79) takes the field during the first quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at Bank of America Stadium on Dec. 22, 2024, in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Jim Dedmon/Imagn Images)
Ekwonu did not participate in the team’s practice on Monday, per the team’s website.
The Panthers selected Ekwonu with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, and the North Carolina State product has been durable through his first three seasons in the NFL. Ekwonu started all 17 games in each of his first two seasons and started 15 of 17 games last season.
Players’ recovery times for appendix procedures vary. Then-Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick missed only eight days in 2022, while former Green Bay Packers left tackle David Bakhtiari missed three games that same season after the procedure.
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Carolina Panthers offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu (79) looks on during the second half at Bank of America Stadium on Oct. 13, 2024, in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Jim Dedmon/Imagn Images)
If Ekwonu is unable to start against the Jaguars, the team will likely turn to backup Yosh Nijman.
Nijman is set to enter his sixth season in the NFL. He spent the first three seasons of his career with the Green Bay Packers and the last two with the Panthers.
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Carolina Panthers offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu (79) during minicamp at Bank of America Stadium on June 11, 2025, in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Jim Dedmon/Imagn Images)
The 29-year-old started 25 of the 83 games he appeared in. Last season, he started three games at right tackle when Taylor Moton was injured.
The Panthers play the Jaguars on the road on Sept. 7 at 1 p.m. ET.
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