Panthers Considering Harlan Miller
- The Panthers lost Josh Norman after rescinding his franchise tag, but they have their eye on another corner in the draft, as Pauline says Carolina could select Southeastern Louisiana defensive back Harlan Miller at the end of the third round. Miller had a private workout with the Panthers earlier this month.
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Looking At Panthers' Norman Decision
- Both Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap and Frank Schwab of Yahoo! Sports take a look at the Panthers‘ shocking decision to rescind the franchise tag to Josh Norman.
Panthers Met With Miles Killebrew
- Southern Utah safety Miles Killebrew had a private workout with Buccaneers secondary coach Brett Maxie, according to Jenna Laine (Twitter link). Killebrew has had a busy schedule, as he’s had workouts with the Patriots, Cardinals, Titans, Panthers, and Browns, per Laine (Twitter link).
Josh Norman Rumors: Thursday Evening
Earlier today, we learned that as many as ten teams have reached out to Josh Norman since he was effectively cut loose by the Panthers on Wednesday. So far, it has been reported that the Steelers, Buccaneers, Dolphins, 49ers, Washington, Jets, and Titans have called on the elite cornerback. However, the Steelers and Jets are reportedly only kicking the tires and don’t have serious plans to pursue the 28-year-old.
Here’s the very latest on Norman:
- The Dolphins are likely out of the running for Norman, according to Cole (Twitter link).
- Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff says the team is not interested in signing Norman, as D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. “We are not going in that direction,” Dimitroff said.
Earlier Updates:
- Norman has switched agents since having his franchise tag revoked by Carolina, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Norman has hired agent Ryan Williams of Athletes First to take lead on his contract. Agent Michael George will serve as his co-representative.
- The Falcons are also in on Norman, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets. He adds that the bidding for Norman is likely to go higher than Janoris Jenkins’ free agent deal of $62.5MM over five years.
- The Panthers came close to not putting the franchise tag on Norman before the start of free agency, two sources tell Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (via Twitter).
- Panthers general manager Dave Gettleman told reporters (including ESPN.com’s David Newton) that the more he and the staff talked, the less attractive a one-year tag for Norman became. He added that there is incentive in getting a compensatory pick as well.
- Gettleman says the message sent to the Panthers by not keeping Norman is “we want people that were all in,” (via Newton). Ultimately, he says $13.9MM was too much.
- The 49ers have interest in Norman, but they’d like to meet with him before diving into the market for him, a league source tells Matt Barrows of The Sacramento Bee.
- Norman will approach free agency carefully, a source tells Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). Norman will consider money, city, team makeup, coach, and ownership and attempt to pick the team which offers the best combination in those areas.
- The Dolphins have $19.5MM in cap room, James Walker of ESPN.com (on Twitter) notes. Miami, in theory, has the kind of money to sign Norman, but they also have to find room to sign their rookie class.
- A few teams have called on Norman in part to find out why the Panthers rescinded the franchise tag, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets.
Panthers Rumors: Norman, Draft, Tackles
Earlier today, Panthers GM Dave Gettleman spoke to reporters about Josh Norman and other issues concerning the team. Here are the highlights:
- Gettleman says no doors have been shut on a Norman return, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. However, one has to imagine that a multi-year deal between the two sides is now something of a longshot. Even if the Panthers wanted to jump back into the mix, they‘d be vying with at least ten other NFL teams.
- Gettleman says the Norman decision will not impact the Panthers’ draft strategy (via Panthers on Twitter). “We’re going to take the best player available,” the GM said.
- Gettleman praised the professionalism of Norman and his agent throughout the process (Twitter link via Joe Person of The Charlotte Observer).
- Gettleman says he sees four or five first-round offensive tackles in the draft (Twitter link via Person).
- When asked about his surprising decision on Norman, Gettleman said, “You might say Dave’s cavalier about this and yada, yada, yada. But bottom line we don’t play until Sept. 8,” (Twitter link via Person).
- Gettleman says having the option of a fifth-year option on a first round pick makes it hard to consider trading out of the first round (link via Newton).
Josh Norman Rumors: Thursday
9:56am: The Steelers are not pursuing Norman, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets.
9:09am: Schefter (on Twitter) adds the Jets and Titans to the list of teams that have called on Norman. However, the Jets are only doing their due diligence and cannot afford him, Manish Mehta of the Daily News tweets.
8:51am: Josh Norman‘s representatives heard from as many as ten teams on Wednesday, including the Steelers, Buccaneers, Dolphins, and 49ers, a source tells Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer. Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) adds the Rams and Bears to the list of teams that have reached out to the top cornerback. The 49ers, Steelers, Dolphins, and Washington have expressed the most interest in Norman so far, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link) hears.
[RELATED: Panthers Pull Franchise Tag From Josh Norman] 
Norman’s camp is all about exceeding an average of $14MM per year while still shooting for $15MM/year, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets. Interestingly, he says that his camp does not seem as caught up in total guaranteed money. Last offseason, Darrelle Revis inked a five-year, $70MM deal with a whopping $39MM fully guaranteed. Norman, apparently, would like to edge that AAV while understanding that he won’t approach that gaudy guarantee.
Yesterday, the Panthers shocked the football world when they rescinded the franchise tag from Norman, making him an unrestricted free agent in the later stages of the NFL offseason. The Panthers gave Norman’s agent permission to pursue a trade at his request, a league source Person, but the Panthers decided to cut him loose when that path did not bear fruit. Apparently, the specter of a holdout that gone into training camp and the preseason was not appealing for Carolina.
Norman, 28, enjoyed a career-year in 2015 as he was named to the All Pro first team and selected for his first Pro Bowl. After producing career highs in both interceptions (four) and passes defensed (18).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Latest On Josh Norman
Some might say that the Panthers put Josh Norman in a bad spot by not rescinding his franchise tender earlier in the offseason. However, as Mike Florio of PFT notes, the Panthers could have put the cornerback in a much worse spot by pulling the tag after the draft. As of today, there are still several teams with the cap room necessary to sign Norman and a clear need for a game-changing cornerback like him. If the Panthers waited a couple of weeks to pull the tender, Norman probably would have been left in limbo without any strong fits.
Here’s more on Norman and the Panthers:
- Eight or nine teams have contacted Norman’s representatives since the Panthers rescinded the franchise tag, a league source tells Joe Person of The Charlotte Observer (on Twitter).
- Norman wanted Patrick Peterson/Darrelle Revis money while the Panthers were only willing to sign him to Byron Maxwell money, which would put him at about $11MM per year, Person tweets.
- Of course, it’s not often that franchise tags are rescinded. The most “recent” cases of the franchise tag being pulled were Leroy Hill in 2009 (Seahawks) and Corey Simon (Eagles) in 2005, as Joel Corry of CBSSports.com tweets.
- The Jaguars are a natural fit for Norman because they need a strong No. 1 cover corner and have the resources to pay him, Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union writes. The Jaguars are $52.5MM under the cap, more than every team except San Francisco.
- In addition to the Jaguars, the Titans, Bears, Giants….and Panthers are among the teams that make the most sense for Norman, Nate Davis of USA Today opines. The Panthers, Davis writes, probably give Norman his best shot at both winning and cashing in since the team has ~$30MM in cap room.
- During Super Bowl week in February, Norman made no secret of his affinity for the 49ers, as Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes. “They’re tremendous, and one of the greatest teams we have among the 32,” Norman said. “Their championships in the Super Bowls are epic. They’ve had all-time greats. They’re right up there with the Packers and Dallas Cowboys in how they do things.”
Josh Norman Becomes Unrestricted Free Agent
The Panthers announced that they have rescinded the franchise tag from Josh Norman, making him an unrestricted free agent. The move comes as an absolute shock as Norman is regarded as one of the league’s top cornerbacks. With Norman off the books, the Panthers now have $13.952MM in cap room that they wouldn’t have had otherwise.
“After a number of conversations with Josh’s agent we realized that a long-term deal was not attainable,” GM Dave Gettleman said in a statement. “We thank Josh for all his contributions and truly wish him well.”
The Panthers reportedly were not interested in meeting Norman‘s asking price of roughly $15-16MM. However, Carolina was said to be fine with letting Norman play out the year under the franchise tag, which, at nearly $14MM, would have paid him like an elite corner.The two sides have not closed the gap in recent weeks and recently Norman informed the Panthers that he would not be in attendance for their conditioning program.
Norman was looking to be paid in excess of $16MM per year, much like the first three years of Darrelle Revis‘ extension, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Panthers were not on board with that, however, and cut him loose instead.
Now, Norman hits the open market and while some teams are tapped out, other teams are flush with cap space. That list of teams includes the 49ers and, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets, the idea of playing in California appeals to Norman. The Rams, Bears, Jaguars, and Titans also have room to spend.
Norman, 28, enjoyed a career-year in 2015 as he was named to the All Pro first team and selected for his first Pro Bowl. After producing career highs in both interceptions (four) and passes defensed (18), Norman is in great position as he demands a multi-year payday. Norman was well-regarded by advanced metrics as well, finishing as the league’s 12th-best corner by Pro Football Focus’ grades.
Currently, Revis stands as the NFL’s highest paid cornerback after signing a $70.12MM contract that includes a whopping $39MM guaranteed. That deal edged out Patrick Peterson of the Cardinals who got a $70.05MM deal with $16.25MM guaranteed and Seahawks corner Richard Sherman, who inked a $56MM deal ($12.43MM guaranteed) to stay in Seattle. Trumaine Johnson accepted his franchise tender earlier this month to become the fourth-highest paid corner in the NFL, but Norman has had his sights set on a lucrative long-term deal instead. Now, he’ll be looking into long-term pacts elsewhere.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Ohio State TE Nick Vannett Drawing Interest From Panthers
- Ohio State tight end Nick Vannett worked out for and/or visited the Panthers, Titans, Falcons, Patriots, Chargers, Packers and previously reported Jets, according to Rand Getlin of NFL.com (on Twitter).
Panthers Met With Andrew Bonnet
- Carson Wentz isn’t the only North Dakota State prospect making the rounds — fullback/tight end Andrew Bonnet finsihed a visit with the Giants tonight, and has also met with the Panthers, reports Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (Twitter link).