02-06-2024, 09:40 AM -
The Panthers have 21 players set to become unrestricted free agents and two other restricted free agents when the new league year begins in March.
The Panthers’ top 10 free agents:
1. Brian Burns, edge
Even after a down season by his standards, Burns should land in the top 10 of league-wide free agents and draw significant interest from teams looking for a young pass rusher just hitting his prime. But it’s hard to see the Panthers letting the 25-year-old Burns hit the market, given the value of pass rushers. Morgan was the No. 2 in the Panthers’ front office when Scott Fitterer turned down the Los Angeles Rams’ offer of two future first-round picks and a second-day pick for Burns in 2022. So while the Panthers could try to tag-and-trade Burns, it seems more like they’ll let him play on the franchise tag in 2024 if they can’t get a long-term deal done.
2. Frankie Luvu, LB
Morgan famously said last week the Panthers need more dogs who play hard and are passionate about the game. He might as well have been talking about Luvu, who is hitting free agency at the right time after the two best seasons of his career. Luvu, 27, played every game in 2023 and led the Panthers with a career-high 125 tackles. In 32 games since the beginning of the 2022 season, Luvu has amassed 236 tackles, 12 1/2 sacks and 29 tackles for loss. Brian Urlacher and Daryl Washington are the only other players in NFL history to hit those marks over a 32-game span.
3. Jeremy Chinn, S
With all due respect to the other players on this list, there’s a sizable drop-off in star power and perceived interest after Burns and Luvu. A couple of years ago Chinn looked like he was on his way to becoming an upper-tier player after finishing second to Chase Young in 2020 for Defensive Rookie of the Year. But injuries sidelined Chinn for 11 games over the past two seasons, and a scheme change in 2023 left Chinn with only a marginal role in Ejiro Evero’s 3-4 defense. While Chinn might lack elite coverage skills, you have to think there will be teams that will see his athletic, 6-3, 220-pound frame, his relative youth (he’ll be 26 on Feb. 26) and ability to play in the box and envision a role for him.
4. Yetur Gross-Matos, edge
Some observers wondered whether Gross-Matos would fit in the Panthers’ three-man front. But the 2020 second-rounder from Penn State turned in a solid season in 2023, with 36 tackles, a career-high 4 1/2 sacks and 10 quarterback hits. Gross-Matos isn’t going to command anywhere close to the money of the top free-agent edge rushers. But the soon-to-be, 26-year-old (who shares a birthday with Chinn) can set the edge in the run game and has potential for growth as a pass rusher.
5. DJ Chark, WR
Chark was second on the team behind Adam Thielen with 525 receiving yards, and led the Panthers with five receiving touchdowns and a 15.0 yards-per-catch average. But for a wideout brought in to stretch the field and give Bryce Young a big-play threat, Chark too often struggled to separate from coverage and get open. Chark’s average separation of 2.3 yards was tied for the seventh worst and he also ranked in the bottom 10 in catch percentage (53.03), according to NFL’s Next Gen Stats. But Chark will be in someone’s camp next summer, likely on another prove-it deal.
6. CJ Henderson, CB
When Jaycee Horn was injured early in the 2021 season, Fitterer sent tight end Dan Arnold and a third-round pick to Jacksonville for Henderson and a fifth-round selection. The hope was Henderson, a top-10 pick in 2020, would benefit from a change of scenery. But he’s been hurt by inconsistent coverage and last year the Panthers declined to pick up his fifth-year option for 2024.
7. Laviska Shenault, WR
A year after acquiring Henderson from the Jags, Fitterer again swung a deal with Jacksonville to pick up Shenault in exchange for a couple of late-round picks. Shenault has had a couple of moments as the Panthers’ gadget receiver, including a pair of long touchdowns in 2022. But Shenault missed nine games with a pair of ankle injuries this past season, when Ihmir Smith-Marsette replaced him as the receiver featured on jet sweeps and other misdirection players.
8. Sam Franklin, S
The 28-year-old Franklin picked off Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins in Week 4 and returned it 99 yards for the longest interception return in Panthers’ history. But after Fitterer fortified the back end of the secondary the past two offseasons, Franklin’s biggest contributions came on special teams. Franklin, a former Temple standout, led the Panthers with seven special teams tackles in 2023 and ranks in the top 10 in the NFC in special teams tackles since entering the league in 2020.
9. J.J. Jansen, LS
The 38-year-old Jansen is putting the Panthers’ consecutive games record out of reach. Jansen has played in 243 straight games since coming to Charlotte in a trade from Green Bay in 2009. The next closest active player on the list is right tackle Taylor Moton with 115 games. The Panthers have signed Jansen to a series of one-year deals for the veteran minimum the last three years. When he was approaching John Kasay’s record for games played in 2022, Jansen said he wanted to play until he was 40. He’s getting closer.
10. Ihmir Smith-Marsette, WR/punt returner
Like Franklin, Smith-Marsette’s greatest value to the Panthers and likely the rest of the league is on special teams. Smith-Marsette, acquired in August in a trade with Kansas City, accounted for the Panthers’ only touchdown at Chicago in Frank Reich’s final game — a 79-yard punt return that was the third-longest in franchise history. Smith-Marsette, 24, tied for the league lead with 37 punt returns and was sixth in yardage (322). Bringing him back on the lowest restricted free agent tender makes sense.
https://theathletic.com/5253080/2024/02/...-rankings/
The Panthers’ top 10 free agents:
1. Brian Burns, edge
Even after a down season by his standards, Burns should land in the top 10 of league-wide free agents and draw significant interest from teams looking for a young pass rusher just hitting his prime. But it’s hard to see the Panthers letting the 25-year-old Burns hit the market, given the value of pass rushers. Morgan was the No. 2 in the Panthers’ front office when Scott Fitterer turned down the Los Angeles Rams’ offer of two future first-round picks and a second-day pick for Burns in 2022. So while the Panthers could try to tag-and-trade Burns, it seems more like they’ll let him play on the franchise tag in 2024 if they can’t get a long-term deal done.
2. Frankie Luvu, LB
Morgan famously said last week the Panthers need more dogs who play hard and are passionate about the game. He might as well have been talking about Luvu, who is hitting free agency at the right time after the two best seasons of his career. Luvu, 27, played every game in 2023 and led the Panthers with a career-high 125 tackles. In 32 games since the beginning of the 2022 season, Luvu has amassed 236 tackles, 12 1/2 sacks and 29 tackles for loss. Brian Urlacher and Daryl Washington are the only other players in NFL history to hit those marks over a 32-game span.
3. Jeremy Chinn, S
With all due respect to the other players on this list, there’s a sizable drop-off in star power and perceived interest after Burns and Luvu. A couple of years ago Chinn looked like he was on his way to becoming an upper-tier player after finishing second to Chase Young in 2020 for Defensive Rookie of the Year. But injuries sidelined Chinn for 11 games over the past two seasons, and a scheme change in 2023 left Chinn with only a marginal role in Ejiro Evero’s 3-4 defense. While Chinn might lack elite coverage skills, you have to think there will be teams that will see his athletic, 6-3, 220-pound frame, his relative youth (he’ll be 26 on Feb. 26) and ability to play in the box and envision a role for him.
4. Yetur Gross-Matos, edge
Some observers wondered whether Gross-Matos would fit in the Panthers’ three-man front. But the 2020 second-rounder from Penn State turned in a solid season in 2023, with 36 tackles, a career-high 4 1/2 sacks and 10 quarterback hits. Gross-Matos isn’t going to command anywhere close to the money of the top free-agent edge rushers. But the soon-to-be, 26-year-old (who shares a birthday with Chinn) can set the edge in the run game and has potential for growth as a pass rusher.
5. DJ Chark, WR
Chark was second on the team behind Adam Thielen with 525 receiving yards, and led the Panthers with five receiving touchdowns and a 15.0 yards-per-catch average. But for a wideout brought in to stretch the field and give Bryce Young a big-play threat, Chark too often struggled to separate from coverage and get open. Chark’s average separation of 2.3 yards was tied for the seventh worst and he also ranked in the bottom 10 in catch percentage (53.03), according to NFL’s Next Gen Stats. But Chark will be in someone’s camp next summer, likely on another prove-it deal.
6. CJ Henderson, CB
When Jaycee Horn was injured early in the 2021 season, Fitterer sent tight end Dan Arnold and a third-round pick to Jacksonville for Henderson and a fifth-round selection. The hope was Henderson, a top-10 pick in 2020, would benefit from a change of scenery. But he’s been hurt by inconsistent coverage and last year the Panthers declined to pick up his fifth-year option for 2024.
7. Laviska Shenault, WR
A year after acquiring Henderson from the Jags, Fitterer again swung a deal with Jacksonville to pick up Shenault in exchange for a couple of late-round picks. Shenault has had a couple of moments as the Panthers’ gadget receiver, including a pair of long touchdowns in 2022. But Shenault missed nine games with a pair of ankle injuries this past season, when Ihmir Smith-Marsette replaced him as the receiver featured on jet sweeps and other misdirection players.
8. Sam Franklin, S
The 28-year-old Franklin picked off Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins in Week 4 and returned it 99 yards for the longest interception return in Panthers’ history. But after Fitterer fortified the back end of the secondary the past two offseasons, Franklin’s biggest contributions came on special teams. Franklin, a former Temple standout, led the Panthers with seven special teams tackles in 2023 and ranks in the top 10 in the NFC in special teams tackles since entering the league in 2020.
9. J.J. Jansen, LS
The 38-year-old Jansen is putting the Panthers’ consecutive games record out of reach. Jansen has played in 243 straight games since coming to Charlotte in a trade from Green Bay in 2009. The next closest active player on the list is right tackle Taylor Moton with 115 games. The Panthers have signed Jansen to a series of one-year deals for the veteran minimum the last three years. When he was approaching John Kasay’s record for games played in 2022, Jansen said he wanted to play until he was 40. He’s getting closer.
10. Ihmir Smith-Marsette, WR/punt returner
Like Franklin, Smith-Marsette’s greatest value to the Panthers and likely the rest of the league is on special teams. Smith-Marsette, acquired in August in a trade with Kansas City, accounted for the Panthers’ only touchdown at Chicago in Frank Reich’s final game — a 79-yard punt return that was the third-longest in franchise history. Smith-Marsette, 24, tied for the league lead with 37 punt returns and was sixth in yardage (322). Bringing him back on the lowest restricted free agent tender makes sense.
https://theathletic.com/5253080/2024/02/...-rankings/
