The Biggest Mistake the Carolina Panthers Made During NFL Free Agency Week 1

Rightfully so, the Carolina Panthers are being hailed for an excellent first week of free agency. With all the moves they made, it's safe to assume they're done spending, so the praise for the first week could be read as praise for the entire free agency.

They signed one of the best edge rushers. They added the best off-ball linebacker. They added a solid backup QB, got one of the best left tackles, and re-signed some key players, too. It's been a fantastic start to the offseason.

It's not been perfect, though. There's one mistake that looms large over the Panthers, and it could come back to bite them.

The Panthers should've signed Rasheed Walker for longer

Green Bay Packers tackle Rasheed Walker (63) against the Arizona Cardinals | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Panthers have made some interesting decisions, and one of them could be a mistake. Is it putting $30 million annually towards an edge rusher with a career high of 8.5 sacks? Is it not re-signing Cade Mays? It's not either of those. It's the Rasheed Walker deal.

Walker is an excellent player. He was considered the second-best left tackle behind Taylor Decker in this class, and Decker's age means that Walker could be viewed as the better option anyway.

The Panthers signed him to a one-year, $10 million deal. It's a steal, considering the projections were over $15 million in salary for the former Green Bay Packers tackle. The problem is the length of the deal.

Now, the Panthers backloaded some of their contracts, so it is very plausible that they looked ahead and couldn't stomach putting more money into Walker with Bryce Young, Jalen Coker, and others needing extensions in the immediate future. The roster is going to get more expensive.

Still, at just $10 million, the Panthers could've gotten him for more years. They could've also punted the issue down the road, which is what they've done before. Restructures are a great thing, and good GMs like Dan Morgan know how to use them to allow for moves like this.

Carolina Panthers offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu (79) looks on before the game | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Walker yielded the fifth-fewest hits in the entire NFL last year as a blocker. He ranked 64th among all blockers in sacks given up. He was 67th in pressures allowed. He earned a 70.0 PFF pass blocking grade.

Put simply, he was good. He might've even been better than Ikem Ekwonu, and he's a comparable age. The transition from Ekwonu to Walker was right there for the taking, and the Panthers should've taken it.

They respect Ekwonu, which is nice. They aren't quite ready to commit to someone after he gets healthy, but he's not under contract, either. Even if he does return to some health, it's a big risk. The Panthers have a great left tackle now, but they won't in 2027.

They are creating an unnecessary risk for themselves by not signing Walker to a longer deal. When they find themselves in this exact same situation again in 2027, they may regret not getting it done when they had the chance.