The Carolina Panthers are coming off their bye week. They beat the Detroit Lions in Week 4 to give them some big momentum heading into the bye. Now, they are preparing for their Week 6 clash. One intriguing factor in that matchup will be Jalen Coker's availability.

Coker suffered an injury against the Cleveland Browns in Week 3. This injury kept him out of action against the Detroit Lions in Week 4. Coming out of the bye, it appears the young wide receiver is still on schedule in his injury recovery.

“Jalen's on track. He's got a couple of big days ahead of him. I'll give you more information as the week goes on, but we'll get a great opportunity tomorrow to get on the field and to take a look at some things and then see if we can continue to progress,” Panthers coach Dave Canales said in a clip shared by MicNuggets.

Coker has shown some promise over the last couple of seasons. He entered the 2026 campaign having caught five career touchdowns and over 800 receiving yards. This season, he appears to be on track for a breakout campaign. He has 18 catches, 222 yards, and two touchdowns through parts of three games.

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The Panthers are off to an up-and-down start as a whole. Carolina dominated the Lions and Atlanta Falcons in their two wins on the year. However, they also had a bad loss to the Cleveland Browns while losing an offensive shootout with the Chicago Bears.

Carolina is looking to win the NFC South once again this season. They will need Coker back and fully healthy if they want to have the best shot at doing so. The Panthers are in action on October 18 against Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles.