CHARLOTTE -- The Panthers claimed three players Sunday, releasing wide receiver Torrey Smith and waiving rookie running back Elijah Holyfield and cornerback Kevon Seymour to make room for the additions on the 53-man roster.
Smith, who is entering his ninth NFL season, is coming off a year in which he posted career lows in games played (11), receptions (17) and receiving yards (190). He came to Carolina in 2018 in a trade with the Eagles and was vying for one of the final receiver spots.
Holyfield, an undrafted free agent from Georgia, had a solid training camp and preseason but was behind fellow rookie Jordan Scarlett as well as Reggie Bonnafon in the running back pecking order.
Seymour missed all of 2018 with a shoulder injury and most of the 2019 training camp with a hamstring injury. He did not play at all in the preseason. The young cornerback came to Carolina in 2017 in a trade with the Bills. He played in 16 games with two starts in 2017.
The three players Carolina claimed off waivers are wide receiver Brandon Zylstra, safety Natrell Jamerson and wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud.
Zylstra spent the 2018 season with Minnesota, playing in all 16 games while tallying one reception for 23 yards, four punt returns for 26 yards and one kick return for 15 yards. Prior to his season with the Vikings, Zylstra played two years with the Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL, where he was named the league's most outstanding rookie in 2016. He played collegiately at Concordia-Moorhead (D-III).
Jamerson comes to Carolina after spending his rookie season in 2018 with New Orleans, Houston and Green Bay. He recorded five tackles and one pass defensed in 12 games played last year (10 with Houston and two with Green Bay). He originally entered the NFL as a fifth-round draft pick by New Orleans out of Wisconsin.
McCloud comes to Carolina from Buffalo, where he played in 10 games with one start as a rookie last year, posting five receptions for 36 yards, one kickoff return for 18 yards and two punt returns for 20 yards. The Bills selected McCloud in the sixth round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of Clemson.
