Projected $25 Million and $17 Million Superstars Linked to Panthers in Free Agency

It is no secret that the Carolina Panthers badly n eed pass rushers. The ability, or lack thereof, to get to the quarterback has been the biggest talking point surrounding (and hindering) the Panthers' defense.

They went to great lengths to patch up the run defense last offseason. Not all the moves worked, but the run defense did greatly improve. They already had a very good secondary with Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson.

The last step is to fix that pass rush. It's been bad since 2021, which was the last time they ranked outside the bottom 10 in total sacks. They've tried to nickel and dime it, but it hasn't worked. Might they finally splurge? One insider believes so.

Panthers linked to Trey Hendrickson, Jaelan Phillips in free agency

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91) watches a replay as the Detroit Lions celebrate a touchdown | Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Panthers have not really addressed the pass rush as well as they should have in a long time. The only notable thing they did was trade Brian Burns (after turning down a huge offer for him the year prior).

They've addressed it with patchwork solutions like DJ Wonnum and Jadeveon Clowney in free agency or Princely Umanmielen and Nic Scourton in the draft. Might it be time to finally go after a real solution?

David Newton of ESPN thinks it's possible. "It's time to spend big money... Cincinnati's Trey Hendrickson is the most notable free agent edge rusher, but he's 31. Philadelphia's Jaelan Phillips, 27, makes more sense as a fit for the Panthers given his experience in the 3-4 scheme," Newton wrote.

Hendrickson has a projected AAV of over $25 million per Spotrac. That's a costly addition, especially since the Panthers currently have less than $10 million in cap space. They can and will get creative to clear up more, but enough to sign Hendrickson and have room for more additions? Likely not.

Phillips makes more sense, as Newton said, but for more reasons than scheme fit. He's only going to cost about $17 million per Spotrac. That's still more money than the Panthers have, but Morgan can work some magic. Signing Phillips probably leaves room to make other additions the Panthers can't afford to overlook.

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