After nearly a year spent rehabbing a fibula injury suffered in Week 2 of the 2023 season, Shaq Thompson has spent ample time thinking about the future.
Thompson, a linebacker, is nearing a decade with the Carolina Panthers. As he imagines his legacy in the NFL, at this point, he wants to retire as a member of the Panthers.
“I love it here,” Thompson said, via the Panthers’ official team website. “I’ve been here for nine, going into 10 years. This is all I know. I would love to retire here. But that’s in my fate. And when I say that, I control what I can control, I control myself on that field.”
Life is a little different for Thompson heading into year 10. The linebacker position was reshaped during the offseason. The Panthers’ veteran will be lining up next to names like Josey Jewell, who the Panthers signed as a free agent this offseason.

Thompson doesn’t foresee any struggle playing with Jewell. He merely wants to play the best football of his career.
“I feel a lot more comfortable honestly,” Thompson said. “That’s the biggest thing. I know what I’m doing, I know where the help is. I’m starting to understand the flow of the defense and stuff like that. So, it’s just once you understand that you could probably just play by the X’s and O’s a little bit.”
To play at his best, Thompson will need to be healthy. In the last four seasons, excluding the 2023 campaign, the 30-year-old defensive signal caller topped 100 tackles.
Consistency is his middle name. That is why he was labeled a bounce-back candidate by Pro Football Focus.
Carolina’s defense only gets better with Thompson on the field. He aims to be on it all year. He also is hoping his play allows him to retire as a member of the only franchise he knows.