The Panthers have a little bit of money to spend. We look at some of the bigger targets they could go after.
The Carolina Panthers have a little bit of money to play with this spring. They start the offseason with about $30 million in cap space according to Over the Cap with the ability to create a little bit more room by restructuring some of their bigger contracts. It’s far from the most space in the league, but it’s enough to bring in some decent players. We’ll take a look at a few splashier targets the Panthers could target to try and enhance their roster.
Jevon Holland, Safety
The Panthers have tried and failed to find dependable safety play via free agency for a few years now. They could take another crack at it with Holland, who has been a quality safety for the Dolphins since he was drafted in 2021. He’s still young, so he fits the rebuilding timeline.
Justin Reid, Safety
The Chiefs are expected to let Reid walk, and he’d be a perfect fit for the Panthers. He’s been a very good coverage safety and would bring a wealth of postseason and Super Bowl experience to a locker room completely devoid of that. Plus he can function as a backup kicker in a pinch. Who doesn’t like that kind of versatility?
Josh Sweat, Edge
The Panthers had one of the worst pass rushes in the NFL last season. Jadeveon Clowney and A’Shawn Robinson led the team in sacks last year with 5.5 each, and that’s simply not good enough. There’s going to be a lot of competition for Sweat’s services coming off a Super Bowl run, but the Panthers should at least make an effort.
Zack Baun, Linebacker
Another Eagle. Baun can fill the Frankie Luvu role for the Panthers. He’s an off ball linebacker that excelled in coverage last season, but he also has the ability to get after the quarterback when the situation calls for it. Josey Jewell was good in that kind of role down the stretch last season, and having another linebacker than can add to that starts to make the Panthers defense look a little more formidable.
UPDATE: The Eagles re-signed Baun about 30 minutes after this post went up.
Malcolm Koonce, Edge
This could be a possible buy low situation with a big payoff. Koonce got hurt right before the start of last season and was place on season ending injured reserve. He had all eight of his sacks in the 2023 season in the last nine games, with six of those coming across the final four. If he can build off that, he’d be much needed boost to the Panthers’ pass rush.
Chris Godwin, WR
The Panthers need a reliable target other than 35 year old Adam Thielen. Godwin and Thielen overlap in that they are probably both best suited to play in the slot right now, but that’d only be a one year problem. The Panthers can work that out and then let Godwin slide into the slot full time after Thielen more than likely leaves after next season. Godwin missed the end of last season with an ankle injury, but he should be ready to go for most if not all of the offseason.
Christian Kirk, WR
If the Panthers want a wide receiver option that’ll probably come cheaper while being a better fit for the current roster, they could look to former Jaguars wide receiver Christian Kirk, who just got released. He’s had a rough last couple of seasons in Jacksonville, but he did go for 1,100 yards in his first season there. He could bolster the receiving corps and add a bit of much needed explosiveness to the room.