Former Madison Academy star Jordan Matthews could be running some new routes for the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

The Panthers traded wide receiver Diontae Johnson to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 29, but he remains the NFL team’s leading receiver with 30 receptions for 357 yards and three touchdowns.

On Tuesday, Carolina traded wide receiver Jonathan Mingo to the Dallas Cowboys. Mingo had 12 receptions for 121 yards, and his departure leaves the Panthers with three wide receivers who have more than eight receptions nine games into the 2024 season.

Quarterback Bryce Young will have three active-roster wide receivers to target when Carolina meets the New York Giants on Sunday in Munich, Germany — Jalen Coker, Xavier Legette and David Moore. Legette is a 2024 first-round draft pick, Coker an undrafted rookie and Moore a seven-year veteran who had five receptions across the previous four seasons.

The Panthers will turn to their practice squad and Matthews to fill in as needed.

“We’re counting on Deven Thompkins helping us at wide receiver,” Carolina coach Dave Canales said on Wednesday. “And then Jordan Matthews, who played receiver in his background — he’s a tight end now by training. But I think he’s the second-leading (career) catch and touchdown-maker on our team after Adam Thielen, so I got a lot of confidence in Jordan, and we’re going to count on him to help us out, too, in that way.”

A 1,000-yard receiver last season, 11-year veteran Thielen had eight receptions in the first three games this season before going on injured reserve with a hamstring issue. He returned to practice on Oct. 23, but Thielen has had only four limited practices and did not practice on Wednesday.

As a Vanderbilt wide receiver, Matthews broke SEC career records with 262 receptions for 3,759 yards. As a second-round draft pick, Matthews had caught 225 passes for 2,673 yards and 19 touchdowns for Philadelphia in his first three NFL seasons when the Eagles traded him to the Buffalo Bills during training camp in 2017.

Matthews has been bedeviled by injuries since the trade, including missing the entire 2022 season. Over the past eight seasons, he has 49 receptions for 615 yards and three touchdowns in 34 games with the Bills, Eagles, San Francisco 49ers and Panthers.

In 2021, Matthews decided to transition from a wide receiver to a tight end and added 20 pounds to make the position switch. On Sunday, he could be switching back and forth.

“He’ll be able to do a little bit of both,” Canales said. “So really cool to just kind of have some of those versatile players like (offensive lineman) Brady (Christensen), like Jordan, who can give us some flexibility and get it done.”

Before entering the NFL, Matthews was a football and basketball standout for Madison Academy. He helped the Mustangs win the AHSAA Class 3A boys’ basketball championship in 2008 and reach the title game the next two seasons. In football, Matthews earned All-State recognition in 2009, when he caught 61 passes for 1,061 yards and 13 touchdowns to boost his prep total to 38 TD receptions.

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The Alabama Game of the Week is the Detroit Lions-Houston Texans contest on Sunday night. Thirteen players from Alabama high schools and colleges are on the teams’ active rosters.

The Week 10 schedule (with all times Central and point spreads from BetMGM):

Thursday

· Cincinnati Bengals at Baltimore Ravens (-6), 7:15 p.m. (Prime Video)

Sunday

· New York Giants (-6.5) vs. Carolina Panthers in Munich, Germany, 8:30 a.m. (NFL Network)

· New England Patriots at Chicago Bears (-6.5), noon

· Buffalo Bills (-4) at Indianapolis Colts, noon

· Minnesota Vikings (-4.5) at Jacksonville Jaguars, noon

· Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs (-8.5), noon

· Atlanta Falcons (-3.5) at New Orleans Saints, noon (WBRC, WZDX, WALA, WCOV, WDFX)

· San Francisco 49ers (-6) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, noon

· Pittsburgh Steelers at Washington Commanders (-3), noon (WIAT, WTVY, WHNT, WKRG, WAKA)

· Tennessee Titans at Los Angeles Chargers (-7.5), 3:05 p.m.

· New York Jets at Arizona Cardinals (-1), 3:25 p.m.

· Philadelphia Eagles (-7.5) at Dallas Cowboys, 3:25 p.m. (WIAT, WTVY, WHNT, WKRG, WAKA)

· Detroit Lions (-3.5) at Houston Texans, 7:20 p.m. (NBC)

Monday

· Miami Dolphins at Los Angeles Rams (-1), 7:15 p.m. (ESPN)

CHECK OUT MAPS OF SUNDAY’S BROADCAST TV COVERAGE

Teams on their bye this week are the Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers, Las Vegas Raiders and Seattle Seahawks.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.