CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Hunter Renfrow remembers being cut by the Las Vegas Raiders on March 13, 2024, and not even caring all that much.
He had no desire to play football.
Physically, he felt awful. He’d lost 35 pounds, went a week with a 103-degree fever and was completely zapped of the energy and fire he was once known to bring to the football field. Running routes, catching passes and being blasted by defensive backs was the last thing on his mind.
But after being diagnosed with a severe case of ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that causes inflammation and ulcers in the lining of the large intestine and rectum, the 2021 Pro Bowler is now feeling like himself again. He’s trying to make an NFL comeback with the Carolina Panthers, the team he rooted for as a kid growing up in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Dabo Swinney, his college coach at Clemson, believes if anyone can make it back it's Renfrow.
“You’re playing football at the highest level and he just couldn’t eat,” Swinney said. “It affected him, and he was really done (with football). I didn’t think he was gonna play again.”
Neither did Renfrow.
“I was like, I’m never playing a football again,” Renfroe said. “Like when you feel like that, you feel like you’re letting your teammates down.”
Renfrow’s problems surfaced late in the 2021 season in which he caught a career-high 103 passes for 1,038 yards and nine touchdowns. He noticed his energy level had dropped off significantly and he could never seem to get it all the way back, even after taking a month off to prep for his first Pro Bowl appearance.
The Raiders rewarded Renfrow with a two-year, $32 million contract extension that offseason, but he never came close to reaching that level of production again. He caught just 36 passes for 330 yards and two touchdowns in 2022 and 25 passes for 255 yards and no touchdowns in 2023, leading to his release.
But after several hospital visits and a referral to a Charlotte-area pediatrician, Renfrow finally received a diagnosis. He began receiving treatment, started a new diet and saw his appetite return. By September he'd put back on the 35 pounds he'd lost and then some.
His energy returned.
He played pickleball, basketball and golf and the competitive juices began to return.
As the 2024 NFL season went out without him, Renfrow privately began discussing a possible comeback with Swinney, who has remained a close friend and father figure.
“I was like Hunter, listen, you know you’re gonna be 40 one day," Swinney said. “So if you got more left in you ...”
In January, Renfrow took Swinney’s advice and began to work his way back into football shape. He asked his agent if the Panthers might be interested in giving him a workout. They were, and that ultimately led to a one-year, $1.22 million contract that included a modest $50,000 signing bonus.
It was a no-lose proposition for the Panthers.
But if Monday is any indication, Renfrow might just be a solid under-the-radar free agent addition for the Panthers.
With Swinney observing from the Panthers sideline as a guest of coach Dave Canales, the 5-foot-10 Renfrow made two impressive catches reminiscent of the player who went from walk-on to catching the game-winning touchdown pass with 1 second remaining in Clemson's dramatic 35-31 win over Alabama in the national championship game in the 2016 season.
Renfrow said he feels appreciative as he continues “pushing toward something special.”
While the unimposing Renfrow may look like an ordinary guy off the field, Swinney said that when he puts on the pads he "turns into Superman.”
“He catches it. He makes plays,” Swinney said. “He understands the leverage and influence and route-running and break points and how to set things up and how to play with his hands at full speed. And he’s just got elite change of direction. ... But he’s a little guy that plays really big, and is really crafty. Just his ability to separate and change direction, that’s hard to find.”
Renfrow is no lock to make the Panthers roster.
The Panthers have upgraded their wide receiver position in recent years, drafting Xavier Legette and Tetairoa McMillan in the first round in 2024 and 2025, respectively. They also have veteran wide receivers Adam Thielen and David Moore, and the team remains high on last year’s surprise undrafted rookie standout Jalen Coker.
But Canales likes what he's seen so far from Renfrow.
“He looks like the Hunter that I remember,” Canales said.
Canales said Renfrow began to show a burst during the team’s OTAs in the spring, and he’s been pleased with his development ever since, citing the five-year NFL veteran's knowledge of coverages and leverages and ability to attack defenses.
The next month will go a long way toward determining whether Renfrow is able to make it all the way back.
Either way, at least he has his health.
“I’m just pulling for him,” Swinney said. “He’s having fun again. He’s 29 and so I’m just happy that he’s back out here. If he stays healthy he’ll do what Renfrow does. That’s just who he is.”
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Steve Reed, The Associated Press
