Matt

Corral

Corral continues to struggle to stick on rosters, although his signing by the Vikings late in camp was enough to suggest he wouldn’t be long for the roster. In addition to Corral, the Vikings also waived RB DeWayne McBride, TE Sammis Reyes, RB Mo Ibrahim, CB Jaylin Williams, TE Neal Johnson, WR Justin Hall, LB Owen Porter, OL Chuck Filiaga, OL Doug Nester, OL Matt Cindric, OL Spencer Rolland, and DL Tyler Manoa.

The former Panthers third-round pick most recently appeared in four games for the UFL’s Birmingham Stallions. He is unlikely to take regular season snaps for the Vikings at any point, ranking fourth on the depth chart.

Corral was briefly with the Patriots during the 2023 season but did not latch on to get in-game action. He was a third round pick by the Panthers in 2022 after starting at Ole Miss in college. Corral did not make a regular season appearance in the NFL, but will now get a chance to start for the Birmingham Stallions in the newly minted UFL.

Corral spent the preseason with the Panthers before being waived, getting claimed by the Patriots, then getting waived again. He cleared waivers and signed with New England’s practice squad, joining rookie Malik Cunningham at QB. Corral will only see action if Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe are unable to play at any point of the season.

Bailey Zappe was promoted from the practice squad and will back up Mac Jones in Week 1. The Patriots claimed Corral from the Panthers last week but will pivot back to Zappe. Corral could re-sign to the Patriots’ practice squad if he clears waivers.

In all likelihood, the backup job will go to Bailey Zappe in Week 1. The second-year quarterback who was waived on roster cutdown day was signed to the team’s practice squad the following day, and should have the inside edge on Matt Corral, who the team claimed off waivers late last week. Zappe has spent all summer playing in the Patriots’ new offensive scheme, and was a reliable backup last season, going 2-0 in his starts while throwing for 781 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions. Belichick sounds like he’s leaving the door open for Corral to be the backup heading into this week, but as he noted on Monday, “He hasn’t even been on the field yet.”

Corral was waived by the Panthers a day after roster cutdown day but is now headed to New England. The former third-round pick, whose 2022 was cut short by an injury before Week 1, will now have a chance to catch on with the Patriots. Corral brings a productive college profile to the pros that includes more than 8,200 passing yards, 57 touchdowns, and 23 interceptions but has struggled in preseason action. Through five career preseason games, he’s completed 71-of-84 passes for 318 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception. He’s still got a long way to go to make a 53-man roster.

The move leaves the Panthers with two quarterbacks on their active roster - rookie Bryce Young and veteran Andy Dalton. It is likely the Panthers try and bring back Corral via the practice squad should he clear waivers, which would allow the team some maneuverability to carry three quarterbacks for game days to leverage the new league rules.

With Andy Dalton inactive, Corral played most of the game when Bryce Young left. The second-year quarterback took a step forward after throwing an interception in his debut, completing 70% of his passes and taking a sack. Corral (Lisfranc) redshirted as a rookie and will spend 2023 as the Panthers’ No. 3 quarterback if he isn’t traded.

Corral’s NFL career couldn’t have gotten off to a more underwhelming start. Once rumored to be a fringe first-round talent, Corral slipped all the way to the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft and saw a preseason Lisfranc injury end his season before it ever really got started. Officially active for OTAs, Corral should get plenty of reps this offseason but faces an uphill battle to be anything more than the Panthers’ third-string quarterback with Andy Dalton in town. While he doesn’t appear interested in a trade, a strong showing in training camp and the preseason could force the team to deal Corral to a team that’s thin at the quarterback position down the line.