While many Carolina Panthers players who were on the active roster last season are already under contract for 2025, there’s a host of mostly fringe players who don’t have deals in place for the upcoming season. Players who weren’t on the active roster at the end of the season - mostly practice squad players and undrafted free agents - are eligible to sign something called a “futures contract” with the team.
Futures contracts are mutually beneficial to the team and to the players who choose to sign them.
From a team perspective, futures contracts allow front offices to lock up generally younger players who could show improvement over the offseason and benefit the team in the future.