Ed. note - The lack of wide receiver options was intentional because we will address the need for a free agent wide receiver in another article soon. -BS
The Panthers have around $30-ish million in cap space, depending on which source you consult. Spotrac has them with $31.2 million in available space, while Over The Cap says they have $29.4 million available to spend. Either way, they don’t have a ton of room to work with, but they do have a little bit of change in their pockets if they want to spend it.
For the purpose of this exercise, I’m going to split the difference between Spotrac and Over The Cap’s figures and use $30 million as my cap space number.* I’m going to list four free agent targets the Panthers could pursue when the league year opens on Wednesday (March 17). I don’t believe the Panthers can or should sign all five of these players, and I’m not saying they should. It’s just a list of players who could make sense for them, and I do think they could sign a few players from this list, but probably not all.
*- The Panthers will have to use some cap space to sign their draft picks, which should be around $7 million total.
Hunter Henry, TE, Chargers
Why it makes sense: The Panthers need to upgrade their tight end position and Henry is a good candidate to do just that. He’s young (26) and would be an immediate upgrade to Ian Thomas. He’s the No. 3 tight end according to Spotrac’s rankings, and the No. 1 ranked tight end among the unrestricted free agents (UFAs) who are currently available. He would be a great signing for the Panthers and would fit well into Joe Brady’s offensive scheme as an outlet for Teddy Bridgewater (or Deshaun Watson, or a rookie draft pick).
Why it doesn’t make sense: He has an injury history that will make teams cautious of giving him a big money contract. Henry has never played a full 16-game schedule and missed the entire 2018 season with a torn ACL. Spotrac currently lists his market value as a 4-year, $43.8 million contract with a $10.9 million annual average value (AAV). If Henry could stay healthy it would be a steal to get someone of his caliber at that rate, but the big question is whether or not he could stay healthy enough to get maximum value out of the investment.
Pat Elflein, G, Jets
Why it makes sense: The Panthers need at least three offensive linemen this offseason just to have enough to field a competitive team. We’re not even talking about good offensive linemen here. The Panthers need warm bodies just to take the field. For that reason alone Elflein makes sense because he already qualifies as ‘better than what we currently have’. Elflein is UFA after signing a 4-year, $3.7 million contract with the Vikings in 2017 after being drafted in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft, so he could be a solid mid-grade free agent target for the Panthers.
Why it doesn’t make sense: He’s just now coming off his rookie deal and has already been waived by the team that drafted him. The Jets claimed him off waivers in 2020 after the Vikings released him due to a thumb injury. Elflein also missed parts of the 2017 and 2018 seasons due to injuries and has already had two surgeries (one on his shoulder and one on his ankle). Again, he’s young enough where this may not be an issue, but it’s something the Panthers should be cautious about if they want to pursue him as a potential signing.
Austin Johnson, DT, Giants
Why it makes sense: The Panthers released veteran defensive tackle Kawann Short to create cap space after Short missed the majority of the last two seasons with back-to-back shoulder surgeries and need to find a replacement for him on the roster. Johnson is a former second round pick (Titans, 2016 NFL Draft) who signed a 1-year, $1.5 million deal with the Giants in 2020 and could probably be signed for something similar by the Panthers in 2021. It would give them a decent depth piece at defensive tackle for a price that wouldn’t break the bank and would allow them to use Efe Obada as a pass rusher more often.
Why it doesn’t make sense: The Panthers can sign Obada as a restricted free agent and use him at defensive tackle in some formations like they did last season for less money than what they would have to pay to sign Johnson as an unrestricted free agent. From a pure money saving standpoint, it probably makes more sense to just keep Obada on the roster and use the $1.5-2 million it would take to sign Johnson on a more pressing need.
Patrick Onwuasor, LB, Jets
Why it makes sense: The Panthers need someone to replace Tahir Whitehead at linebacker, and it’s probably the easiest spot to fill because it just needs to be someone who can actually play linebacker at an NFL level. Onwuasor signed with the Ravens as a UDFA in 2016 and played well for them, logging 223 tackles (150 solo), 9.5 sacks, 1 interception and 6 passes defensed. He signed a 1-year, $2 million contract with the Jets in 2020 but spent all but one game of the season on injured reserve. Spotrac lists his market value as a 4-year, $19.3 million contract with a $4.8 million AAV, which is a pretty decent deal for a linebacker with his youth and production.
Why it doesn’t make sense: Spending all but one game of the 2020 season on injured reserve will give any team an uneasy feeling about signing a player to a multi-year deal, but if the Panthers could get Onwuasor for a 1 or 2-year deal for around $10 million total it wouldn’t be a bad gamble to make. On the other hand, the last time they signed a linebacker it was an unmitigated disaster, so they could potentially be leery of repeating the same mistake two offseasons in a row.
What do you think, Panthers fans? Would you like to see the Panthers target some of these players in free agency? If so, which ones? Do you have other players you’d like to see them sign? Who are they? Let’s hear your thoughts!
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March 15, 2021
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Four free agent targets that make sense for the Panthers - Cat Scratch Reader
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