The Panthers Have a Trade Deadline Decision to Make

If you had asked me before Sunday what the Carolina Panthers should do at the trade deadline, I probably would've told you to go get some help. They had won two straight, Bryce Young was playing well and the defense had started to look a lot better than it did earlier in the season. For the first time in a while, it felt like Carolina might actually have a reason to look for ways to improve the roster at the deadline instead of wondering which players it could trade away.

Then Tampa Bay beat the Panthers 43-13.

And yeah, that changed things for me a little bit.

One bad game shouldn't completely change how you feel about a team, but it was hard to watch that one and think Carolina is a player or two away. The Panthers turned the ball over four times, gave up 258 rushing yards and allowed five sacks. They were down 33-6 at halftime, and just about every problem this roster has showed up at the same time.

That's what makes this deadline interesting for Dan Morgan. The Panthers are 3-3 and still have plenty to play for, so I don't think you can just start selling players and looking toward next season. At the same time, this isn't a roster I'd be comfortable taking valuable draft picks away from just to make a run at the division.

There's a difference between buying and going all-in

I keep coming back to the injuries because Carolina is getting pretty thin in a couple of places. Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson are on injured reserve, and the Panthers have already had to dig deeper into their cornerback depth than they probably expected. Jaelan Phillips has been dealing with a hamstring injury, Thomas Incoom is on injured reserve and Carolina has also had to turn to Nick Hampton for help at edge.

Those are two positions where I'd be making calls if I'm Morgan. I wouldn't be looking for a star, and I'm definitely not giving up a second-round pick just because the Panthers happen to be in the division race. But if a team is willing to move a corner or pass rusher for a Day 3 pick, especially someone Carolina could keep around beyond this season, I'd be interested.

That's probably where the Tampa Bay loss changed my thinking the most. Before Sunday, I might've been willing to be a little more aggressive. After watching the Panthers get pushed around the way they did, I don't think one expensive addition suddenly changes what this team is. There are still too many areas that need work, and Carolina is going to need its draft picks to keep fixing them.

Taylor Moton's injury only adds to that. He's now on injured reserve with a broken fibula, and the offensive line just gave up five sacks against Tampa Bay. Morgan has already put a lot of resources into that group, so I don't know that I'd spend even more draft capital there unless the right deal practically fell into his lap.

I still wouldn't sell

The other side of this is pretty simple for me. Carolina is 3-3, and I'm not ready to start moving useful players off the roster because of one terrible Sunday.

This team has played better than what we saw against Tampa Bay. Young has put together some good games, the defense had been playing better and Carolina has won games I'm not sure many people expected it to win. If the Panthers were 2-5 or 1-6, this would be a completely different conversation. They're not.

That doesn't mean Morgan should pretend this team is closer than it really is. If somebody calls with an offer that's too good to pass up for a player Carolina doesn't see as part of its future, you listen. But actively shopping useful players while you're still in the division race doesn't make much sense to me.

So where do I land?

I'm buying. I'm just not going crazy doing it.

Find some depth at corner. See what an edge rusher costs. Carolina could probably use someone like D.J. Wonnum right about now. If there's a younger player available who can help now and still be part of this thing next season, even better. What I wouldn't do is chase a big name just so it looks like Carolina is going for it.

The Panthers have finally reached a point where the trade deadline isn't only about the future. That's progress. Morgan just needs to make sure whatever he does at the deadline doesn't hurt what they're trying to build beyond this season.

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