Panthers Not Committing To Ikem Ekwonu As Week 1 Left Tackle
When no tackles came off the board in the top five, the Panthers pounced on the opportunity to stop their revolving door at left tackle. The team has not had the same primary left tackle starter since Jordan Gross‘ 2014 retirement, and Ikem Ekwonu is positioned to be the long-term answer.
It is not certain that stretch will begin at this season’s outset. Matt Rhule said Ekwonu has a “long way to go” in his preparation to be an NFL left tackle, via Joe Person of The Athletic, who adds Brady Christensen took plenty of reps (nonpadded reps, but still) during the Panthers’ offseason program (subscription required).
[RELATED: Christensen A Guard Option For Panthers]
Christensen’s three season-ending starts at left tackle appear to have impressed the Panthers’ staff, Person adds. The 2021 third-rounder has gained more momentum this offseason. Rhule said earlier this year he should have played the 2020 first-team All-American more last season, and offensive line coach James Campen said before the draft the BYU product would factor into the left tackle competition. Rhule said Thursday that Christensen is one of the best players on Carolina’s roster, via Person, who adds this should point to Christensen lining up as a first-stringer — at either left tackle or left guard — come Week 1 (Twitter link).
An offensive line featuring the team’s top left tackle prospect since Gross and the evidently improving Christensen alongside him at guard would make the most sense, from a need-filling standpoint. Ekwonu would not be out of place at guard, having played there in high school and at points during his stay at North Carolina State. If Rhule and Co. deem Ekwonu — a 2021 first-team All-American — not ready, a left side featuring Christensen at tackle and Michael Jordan at guard would seem to be the play. Carolina also has versatile veteran Cameron Erving (nine 2021 starts) entering his second season with the team.
It has been a while since a top-10 tackle draftee did not start in Week 1. Greg Robinson, the Rams’ No. 2 overall pick in 2014, is the most recent such investment to begin his rookie year on the bench. Training camp and the preseason will obviously be a much better gauge of Ekwonu’s readiness compared to various nonpadded workouts, and the No. 6 overall choice being a starter in Week 1 should still be considered more likely than not.
This Date In Transactions History: Thomas Davis Signs Extension With Panthers
“I now get to officially end my career as a Carolina Panther and that means the world to me.”
That’s how Thomas Davis responded to the two-year extension he inked on this date in 2015. Of course, like most sports stories, things rarely work out as expected.
The 14th overall pick out of Georgia back in 2005, Davis was a key member of the Panthers defense for more than a decade. While the linebacker was limited to only seven games between the 2009 and 2011 seasons, he otherwise missed only nine contests in his 11 healthy seasons with the organization. By the time 2015 came around, Davis had already racked up nearly 750 tackles to go along with 17.5 sacks, six interceptions, and 13 forced fumbles.
He was a Panthers icon, and with only one year remaining on his contract, he was eager to ink one last deal with the only organization he had ever played for. So, on June 15, 2015, the two sides agreed to a two-year extension that would last through the 2017 campaign. In total, the player earned about $6MM per year on the new deal, which was a modest amount for a linebacker eyeing the end of his career.
In an unpredictable twist, Davis was about to go on the best three-year stretch of his career. During his age-32 campaign in 2015, the veteran earned his first-career All Pro nod and Pro Bowl appearance, and he was wildly productive in three postseason contests. He’d earn Pro Bowl spots in 2016 and 2017, as well. Prior to that 2017 season, Davis inked one more extension, this time for one year. Heading into that 2018 campaign, the linebacker made it clear that it would be his last season.
After sitting out the first four games for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs, he ended up starting all 12 of his appearances in 2018, finishing with 79 tackles. That 2018 season ended up being a disappointment for the Panthers; after having made the postseason in four of the previous five seasons, Carolina failed to crack the playoffs after going 7-9. This disappointment apparently influenced Davis to give it another go, but the Panthers weren’t interested in a reunion, with Davis telling reporters that the organization wanted “to go in a different direction” at the position.
“I wanted to be back,” Davis said (via NFL.com). “I wanted to be part of a group that came and just [righted] the wrongs that we had this season. As one of the leaders of this team, I took full responsibility for some of the things that we allowed to happen and the games that we lost consecutively. I wanted to come back and wanted to help fix that. Unfortunately I’m not going to have that opportunity.”
Davis ended up catching on with the Chargers for the 2019 campaign, collecting 112 tackles in 16 starts. After getting into seven games with Washington in 2020, the linebacker decided to hang up his cleats.
While Davis thought he was going to end his career with the Panthers following that 2017 campaign, a late-career breakout changed some things. Fortunately for the player, he still got his wish to retire with the Panthers when he inked a one-year contract with the team in March, 2021.
Panthers’ Robbie Anderson Contemplating Retirement?
JUNE 15: Addressing the matter at Panthers minicamp, Anderson said he was merely “thinking out loud” and was not seriously considering walking away, via Panthers.com’s Darin Gantt (on Twitter). Two years remain on the wideout’s current Carolina contract.
JUNE 12: Panthers wide receiver Robbie Anderson — who announced this offseason that he would be changing the spelling of his first name from “Robby” to “Robbie” — tweeted yesterday that he was contemplating retirement. “Ain’t gone lie Thinking bout Retiring,” Anderson said (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk). Anderson later deleted the tweet.
It’s unclear if Anderson is truly considering leaving the game, or if he had something else on his mind. With mandatory minicamp scheduled to take place this week, there may be more clarity in that regard in short order. For now, he is expected to reprise his role as a starting boundary receiver opposite D.J. Moore.
In 2020, his first year in Carolina, Anderson posted career-highs in targets (136), receptions (95), and receiving yards (1,096). The deep threat’s yards-per-reception rate (11.5) was down considerably from the averages he posted as a member of the Jets, but that could be explained by the fact that the Panthers deployed Teddy Bridgewater — whose deep ball is not a strength — under center that season. On the flip side, Anderson’s catch percentage, which never exceeded 58.8% during his time in New York, skyrocketed to 69.9% in 2020, thereby demonstrating that he could work intermediate routes just as well as deep routes.
The Panthers handed Anderson a two-year, $29.5MM extension shortly before the 2021 season got underway, but in a campaign filled with inconsistent quarterback play from Sam Darnold, Cam Newton, and P.J. Walker, the former UDFA took a major step back in almost every statistical category. Anderson was still targeted 110 times, but he caught just 53 of those targets, for a career-worst catch percentage of 48.2%. His 519 receiving yards and 9.8 yards-per-reception were also career lows.
Perhaps attempting to buy low, the Patriots engaged the Panthers in trade talks earlier this offseason. Nothing materialized on that front, although Carolina — which subsequently added Rashard Higgins in free agency — was reportedly more than willing to listen to offers.
The club and Anderson later agreed to a restructure for cap purposes, whereby $11.765MM of Anderson’s 2022 salary was converted to a signing bonus. As Smith observes, Anderson would have to pay back that signing bonus if he were to retire, so it seems unlikely that he will actually hang up the cleats this year.
However, the 29-year-old’s future in Charlotte beyond 2022 is certainly up in the air. Although he is under contract through 2023 as a result of the aforementioned extension, his cap charge for the 2023 season spikes to $21.7MM from just under $11MM this year. If he can return to his 2020 level of performance, player and team could work out another extension, and if he cannot, the Panthers will almost certainly release him.
Speculatively, Anderson’s retirement chatter might have stemmed from discontent with the Panthers’ QB situation. The club was unsuccessful in its Deshaun Watson pursuit — which may not have been a bad thing, given recent developments — and currently has Darnold, Walker, and third-round rookie Matt Corral as the top three passers on the depth chart. Carolina continues to be linked to Browns passer Baker Mayfield, but Anderson seems to be decidedly against a potential Mayfield acquisition.
Browns, Panthers Remain In Discussions On Baker Mayfield
As the Browns and Panthers’ salary viewpoints diverged considerably during the draft, the teams’ Baker Mayfield talks broke down. Carolina traded into the third round for Matt Corral. Matt Rhule is warming up to the idea a Corral-Sam Darnold competition will be enough for this year’s Panthers edition, Joe Person of The Athletic notes (subscription required).
But Mayfield is still generating support from some inside the NFC South squad’s building, Person adds. This has reached the point where the Panthers have resumed discussions with the Browns on a trade for the fifth-year quarterback, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports tweets.
Both teams begin minicamp Tuesday. Rhule said last week the Panthers would evaluate their quarterback position after minicamp but indicated a free agent at any position would not need to be acquired too long before training camp to pick up new OC Ben McAdoo‘s system. Days later, some semblance of urgency exists on the Panthers’ side on the Mayfield front, Jones adds (via Twitter). This stance would make sense, with Mayfield having a better chance to bounce back in Carolina with additional time to learn McAdoo’s offense ahead of training camp.
The Panthers having checked in on Russell Wilson and aggressively pursued Deshaun Watson — a year after making a strong offer for Matthew Stafford — makes the prospect of running it back with Darnold (31st in 2021 QBR) tough to buy. But Rhule has bolted on the team’s previous starter (Cam Newton, Teddy Bridgewater) in each of his first two offseasons. And the team did make upgrades along its offensive line, which would stand to aid Darnold in his second Panthers slate. But, through four seasons, Mayfield has been a far more viable starter than Darnold. For a coach on one of the NFL’s hottest seats, adding a quarterback at a much cheaper cost than it took to land Bridgewater or Darnold would seemingly check out.
The Browns have waited for the Panthers’ Darnold-Corral competition to induce them to return to the Mayfield table, but money still divides the teams sitting first and second in cap space. During the draft, the Browns were barely prepared to pay $3MM of Mayfield’s $18.9MM fully guaranteed salary. The Panthers wanted them to pick up at least $13MM. Cleveland appears to have moved closer to the latter figure, and the more the AFC North team pays, the better the draft compensation would be. Still, Carolina should not be expected to give up much for Mayfield.
The Browns would be stuck with nearly the full salary if they release Mayfield, which has long been a non-starter. The Seahawks have been monitoring this situation for months, but lately, the only Seattle-Mayfield connections pertain to a potential release. The latest reports of Panthers-Browns talks could motivate the Seahawks — amid a Geno Smith–Drew Lock QB competition — to reconsider their trade stance. For now, Carolina remains the frontrunner for Mayfield.
Panthers Hosting Carlos Dunlap
One of the top remaining defensive free agents could be close to finding his next NFL team. Carlos Dunlap is visiting the Panthers, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). Dunlap’s visit is expected to encompass both Monday and Tuesday, USA Today’s Josina Anderson tweets.
The 33-year-old finds himself on the open market for the second straight offseason, having been released by the Seahawks. A second consecutive reunion with Seattle was said to be on the table in March, but there has been little reported interest on that front since. Dunlap showcased his continued ability to get to the quarterback in 2021, posting 8.5 sacks despite playing a rotational role.
As part of the team’s overall youth movement, Seattle signed Uchenna Nwosu in free agency, who profiles as a better scheme fit in its new 3-4 defense. That pointed to Dunlap heading elsewhere, though he has remained under the free agent radar both before and after the draft.
As a North Charleston native, a deal with the Panthers would represent a homecoming for the two-time Pro Bowler. Carolina lost a major element of their pass rush when Haason Reddick departed in free agency. Dunlap would likely help to fill that void, given his production last year being reminiscent of his time in Cincinnati. The Panthers also drafted Amare Barno in the sixth round in April.
While Carolina’s edge group will be led by Brian Burns regardless of if Dunlap signs or not, the 12-year veteran would have a role to play on his third NFL team. On, presumably, another short-term deal as his career winds down, Dunlap could add an experienced presence to a team looking to take significant steps forward in 2022.
Door Still Open For Panthers QB Addition
Matt Rhule praised Sam Darnold‘s work at the Panthers’ latest OTA session, and exiting the team’s offseason program, the former No. 3 overall pick remains on track to be Carolina’s starting quarterback. But Rhule said the team is keeping the door open for an addition to this rather important position group, Joe Person of The Athletic tweets.
As teams do following minicamp, the Panthers will assess their roster to determine spots where veterans would provide needed assistance. While it would seem time is running out to bring in someone like Baker Mayfield or Jimmy Garoppolo and expect the newcomer to be proficient in Ben McAdoo‘s offense by September, Rhule said (via Person, on Twitter) an addition just before training camp would give a new player sufficient preparation time.
A trade or free agent signing just before camp would be asking a lot from a veteran quarterback, who would be well behind Darnold in the new offensive coordinator’s system. But the Panthers have been the only known team to enter into substantive negotiations with the Browns for Mayfield. Those talks, though, were not believed to have gone far.
A previous report indicated the Browns were willing to pay “a good chunk” of Mayfield’s fully guaranteed $18.9MM salary, but Person indicates differently, noting Cleveland was willing to pick up barely $3MM of Mayfield’s contract (subscription required). Unsurprisingly, those negotiations broke down, leading the Panthers to Matt Corral in Round 3. The Panthers are believed to want the Browns to pay at least $13MM of that money, leading to this staredown — one in which the Browns hope the Panthers balk at another Darnold season while Carolina envisions Cleveland cutting its four-year starter. Perhaps the Browns have budged a bit since the teams’ mid-draft talks, but this certainly is a sizable financial gulf. These two teams are also first and second in terms of cap space.
Various NFL staffers expect the Browns and 49ers to each cut their trade block-stationed QBs, per ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano, who adds a straw poll among those execs placed Mayfield as more likely to be Seattle-bound and Garoppolo to head to North Carolina. That would be understandable, with the flipside of this scenario potentially involving an intra-NFC West trade. The Seahawks are also interested in Mayfield as a free agent.
The 49ers have more of a timetable here, with Garoppolo’s $24.2MM salary nonguaranteed until the regular season starts. After that date, Garoppolo’s vested-veteran status locks in that figure, putting some pressure on San Francisco to either carry the salary or cut bait come September. Mayfield’s money is already guaranteed, giving the Browns the option hold onto him into the regular season. It will be interesting to see how the ex-Heisman winner proceeds to prevent such a scenario. Mayfield’s January surgery on his non-throwing shoulder has not been an issue for teams, per Graziano, whereas Garoppolo’s March procedure on his right shoulder hijacked the 49ers’ trade effort.
Carolina, which checked on Russell Wilson and met with Deshaun Watson, saw Darnold rank 29th in QBR last season. Though a healthier Christian McCaffrey and the improved offensive line the Panthers should have may change the fifth-year passer’s outlook, it would still seem a gamble for Rhule to tie his hot seat to Darnold for a second season.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/6/22
Here are today’s minor moves to start the week:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: WR Keith Kirkwood
- Waived: WR Talolo Limu-Jones
Houston Texans
- Signed: OL Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms
Tennessee Titans
- Claimed: OL Carson Green (from Houston)
- Waived: OL Derwin Gray
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/1/22
Today’s minor moves around the NFL:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: WR Cameron Batson
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: DE Drew Jackson
Minnesota Vikings
- Waived: RB A.J. Rose Jr.
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: OLB Tuzar Skipper
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: WR Juwan Green
- Waived: TE Ryan Izzo
Panthers Eyeing Brady Christensen At Guard
For the first time in over a decade, the Panthers have a young player positioned to be a long-term left tackle. The franchise will enter this season with a 10th primary left tackle option in the past 10 years, but Ikem Ekwonu appears poised to halt that streak.
Ekwonu’s arrival, however, is likely to move one of Carolina’s Day 2 picks from last year to a new role. The Panthers view Brady Christensen, a 2021 third-round choice, as a better guard option than he was at tackle, Joseph Person of The Athletic notes (subscription required). The BYU product has worked at guard and center during the Panthers’ offseason program thus far.
Christensen started six games at left tackle last season, allowing four sacks on 480 snaps. Carolina lost each of those six games, though the team had many other issues, and Matt Rhule said last year he viewed the rookie as an interior blocker. But the embattled head coach said earlier this offseason he saw some promise for Christensen at tackle, where he started the final three games of last season. Prior to the draft, offensive line coach James Campen also said Christensen would factor into the left tackle picture. Ekwonu going to his home-state team at No. 6 overall changed that plan.
The Panthers added new interior starters in guard Austin Corbett and center Bradley Bozeman. Taylor Moton remains entrenched at right tackle, leaving one open spot — left guard — on Carolina’s reconfigured O-line. Christensen stands to battle 2021 left guard starter Michael Jordan for the gig, per Person. A 2019 fourth-round Bengals draftee, Jordan has an extensive experience advantage. He has made 29 starts at guard for Cincinnati and Carolina in three seasons. One year remains on Jordan’s rookie contract.
Although Christensen was an All-American left tackle who generated Pro Football Focus’ highest single-season tackle grade in the site’s short history grading college players, it appears a best-five-blockers-type plan could produce a quintet featuring the 6-foot-6 lineman alongside Ekwonu next season.
Browns Will Not Release Baker Mayfield
The Browns have no intentions of cutting quarterback Baker Mayfield, a league source tells Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. So if clubs like the Seahawks or Panthers want to acquire the former No. 1 overall pick, they will have to trade for him.
We heard earlier this month that Mayfield suitors believe Cleveland will ultimately release the former No. 1 overall pick, and there are two reasons for that thinking: 1) the Browns and their would-be trade partners have not been able to agree on how much of Mayfield’s $18.9MM salary for 2022 the Browns will cover, and 2) the Browns would rather cut Mayfield than keep him and risk a toxic locker room culture.
It could be that Cabot’s report was based on information leaked by a Browns front office eager to swing a trade and resolve the Mayfield situation, and that a Mayfield release actually remains an option. But from a purely financial perspective, there is no real reason for Cleveland to take any action until it receives a trade offer to its liking. Even with Mayfield’s full cap charge on the books, the team has just shy of $25MM in cap space, good for second-most in the league.
And, in order to avoid a distraction, the club and Mayfield can work out an arrangement much like the one the Texans had with new Browns QB Deshaun Watson last year, whereby Mayfield either works out at the team facility — but not alongside Watson and fellow signal-caller Jacoby Brissett — or simply gets his work in away from the team. Since Mayfield will not take another snap for the Browns, as Cabot confirms in a separate piece, it really wouldn’t matter either way.
In her breakdown of the Mayfield affair, Cabot cites a recent report from Jonathan M. Alexander of the Charlotte Observer, who wrote that trade talks between the Panthers and Browns broke down during last month’s draft because Carolina wanted Cleveland to pay $13MM-$14MM of Mayfield’s salary, something that Cleveland wasn’t willing to do (we had previously written that the salary divide was the reason that the discussions stalled, but we did not have the specific numbers). But the Panthers actually have more cap space than the Browns, and perhaps an even bigger issue than the financial consideration is the fact that Carolina simply does not have an organizational consensus on Mayfield at the moment.
If, as the summer unfolds, it becomes clear that Mayfield would be an upgrade over Panthers QBs Sam Darnold and third-round rookie Matt Corral, Carolina could revisit trade discussions, though that is far from a sure thing. And the Seahawks, the other team that has been most connected to Mayfield, recently bid adieu to one of Mayfield’s biggest supporters, Alonzo Highsmith, the former Browns exec who had been working as an advisor to Seattle GM John Schenider and who just accepted a job as General Manager of Football Operations for the University of Miami.
Cabot says, and Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times confirms (via Twitter), that the Seahawks would be interested in Mayfield if he is cut, but it does not sound like Schneider will be engaging in trade discussions at this point. And if Carolina and Seattle are both out of the trade picture, then Browns GM Andrew Berry will just have to wait until another club faces an injury or underperformance, even if that wait takes him to the trade deadline.
Apparently, that suits Berry just fine.