Rams, Bills, Steelers Could Have Answer to Panthers' TE Problems

Some teams have plenty of depth that the Panthers could take advantage of.

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth (88) warms up for a game against the Miami Dolphins | Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

The Carolina Panthers technically do have depth at the tight end spot. They also have three players who could legitimately be the starter when OTAs and the preseason wrap up in a few months. Normally, that'd be a good thing.

In the case of the Panthers, though, it's not. It's not that they have three starting-caliber tight ends. They have zero. None of them is worthy of starting, but one of them has to. It's a position that's been in need of an upgrade for a long time.

Other teams, however, have multiple starting-caliber tight ends, and the Panthers would be so wise to try to call one of those teams to sneak a trade before OTAs begin.

The Panthers should call one of these teams for a tight end

Buffalo Bills tight end Dawson Knox (88) reacts during the second half against the Jacksonville Jaguars | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Tight end's not exactly the strongest position in football. Fantasy managers know that well, but it does translate to the NFL. Not every team has a strong tight end. The Panthers are a prime example, with perhaps the league's worst TE room.

NFL.com's Bucky Brooks listed five teams doing the best at the position. The opposite of the Panthers, essentially. He listed these teams:

1. Los Angeles Rams
2. Buffalo Bills
3. Las Vegas Raiders
4. Chicago Bears
5. Pittsburgh Steelers

All five of them would make good trade partners for the Panthers, but the Rams, Bills, and Steelers might make the most sense.

The Rams literally have four tight ends they like to use, and they just used a mid-round pick on Ohio State TE Max Klare in the draft. Brooks mentioned that McVay will find ways to utilize them all in unique formations, but there's a limit on what even he can do.

Trading one, likely the older and more expensive Colby Parkinson or perhaps Terrance Ferguson, to make sure there's room for someone the Rams just spent decent capital on would be wise, and they'd land atop the Panthers' depth chart.

Los Angeles Rams tight end Colby Parkinson (84) reacts after the game against the Carolina Panthers | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The Bills may end up needing to cut Dawson Knox due to age and contract status, but trading him to the Panthers would bring them a pretty decent return instead. Knox may also be the best name on this hypothetical trade target list, so Carolina would do well here.

Finally, the Steelers have one veteran tight end, Pat Freiermuth, and one young and ascending tight end, Darnell Washington. The Steelers probably need to get younger, so trading the veteran to the Panthers wouldn't be a huge shock.

The Bears have Cole Kmet, who we've written about as a potential Panther a lot now. He makes sense, too. The Raiders have Michael Mayer behind Brock Bowers, but given Bowers' recent injury struggles, depleting the depth for Fernando Mendoza is unwise, so the Panthers would have to pay a premium.