Ex-Giants captain Bobby Okereke signing with Panthers months after becoming salary-cap casualty

No training camp, no problem for Bobby Okereke.

Unsigned since the Giants made him a salary-cap casualty in March, the 30-year-old Okereke signed a one-year deal Saturday with the Panthers and could compete for a starting job next to All-Pro Devin Lloyd.

The Panthers have 2024 third-round pick Trevin Wallace (20 career starts) and Claudin Cherelus (six) competing all summer.

Neither clearly outplayed the other, and they were the only two potential starters who played Friday night in the preseason finale.

New York Giants linebacker Bobby Okereke (58) reacts after intercepting the ball during the second half of a game against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. Robert Sabo for NY Post

Okereke was a three-year captain for the Giants and played at a difference-making level with 2.5 sacks, two interceptions and four forced fumbles in 2023, after he came over as a free-agent prize (four years, $40 million) from the Colts.

He has a high character reputation around the NFL and is known as a quick learner of new defensive schemes.

None of this is news to Panthers vice president of team development Brian Decker, who was with the Colts during Okereke’s early years and became an advocate of a reunion in Carolina.

Okereke’s play tailed off in 2024 (limited to 12 games) and 2025 after he suffered a back injury, but he saved his best for the end of last season when he had two interceptions and a fumble recovery in the final three games.

Cutting Okereke freed up $9 million in cap space for the Giants. He was set to count $14.4 million on the cap.

Giants inside linebacker Bobby Okereke (58) reacts as he walks off the field at the end of the fourth quarter of the Giants and Philadelphia Eagles game on Thursday, October 9, 2025, in East Rutherford, NJ. Bill Kostroun/New York Post

The Panthers were among the NFL teams most plagued by preseason injuries, and Okereke is the second former Giant turned to as a patchwork solution.

Formerly retired tight end Darren Waller, who teamed with Okereke on the 2023 Giants, also was signed by the Panthers after he played for the Dolphins last season.

Once it reaches late August, teams typically wait until after Week 1 to sign vested veterans because of the NFL’s guaranteed salary rules, but the Panthers felt a pressing need.