NFL free agency: Panthers finally earn strong grade for underrated early moves

Since their early flurry of free agent signings, the Carolina Panthers haven't gotten much love from the national media. Their overpay for Jaycee Horn has earned near-universal bag grades, as well as the Tershawn Wharton signing. Overall, it seems most analysts just aren't convinced that the Panthers really got better on paper compared to last year.

We're here to say they're wrong - because the Panthers aggressively addressed all of their needs in free agency, at least on one side of the ball. Splurging at safety as well as up front and adding depth at linebacker and edge gives Carolina a lot more competence on the field than they had in 2024. Just because there's no big name like Milton Williams doesn't mean this unit hasn't dramatically improved.

One analyst at CBS Sports agrees, at least. Here's Jordan Dajani at CBS Sports on giving the Panthers a B+ grade for their early moves in free agency.

"The Panthers entered free agency needing to address the defensive side of the ball, and that's exactly what they did with Tre'Von Moehrig, Patrick Jones II, Bobby Brown III and Tershawn Wharton. I view Moehrig and Brown as underrated players who should be immediate contributors to help the unit that gave up the most yards per play in the NFL last season (6.0)... All in all, I like what Carolina has done."

NFL — Dec 22, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders safety Tre'von Moehrig (7) breaks up a pass intended for Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Brenton Strange (85) during the first quarter at Allegiant Stadium. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

This new-look defense might still look like a bad unit and there's a distinct possbility that it is. However, you have to keep in mind that even if they were to rank somewhere between 20th and 25th in scoring defense in 2025 that would still be a massive improvement over last season. The bar is admittedly low on defense, but the gains are there and they are significant.

Another underrated element of this free agent period is that the Panthers didn't allow their roster to get any worse than it already was. Carolina will be returning their entire starting offensive line from last year as well as all their significant backups. That keeps a good unit going strong - and that continuity could make them even better.

Defensively the only position where the Panthers were better than average (or at least worth not blowin up) was cornerback. There they retained Mike Jackson and Jaycee Horn, returning their best defensive position group undiminished for 2025.

Additionally, the Rico Dowdle signing has the potential to be a huge move - if Chuba Hubbard were to get injured we know Dowdle has more than enough ability to start at a high level. That should keep the run game going at a strong pace, as well.

We still have questions about wide receiver and tight end and they'll need another legit safety to pair with Tre'Von Moehrig, but this has been a very promising start to the offseason.

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