The Panthers’ first two moves of free agency left a lot to be desired. Signing Pat Elflein and Cameron Erving does give Carolina’s offensive line some versatility, but fans had to be hoping for a slightly bigger splash than that.
Elflein and Erving weren’t the only two players the team looked at on the first day of the legal tampering period, though. Paul Kuharsky reports that the team was also in on free agent defensive lineman Denico Autry before he signed with the Titans as well as cornerback Michael Davis, who re-signed with the Chargers, per Joe Person at the Athletic.
Besides the two OL they landed, Panthers were also in on DL Denico Autry (per @PaulKuharskyNFL) and CB Michael Davis before he-signed with the Chargers.
Probably a good indicator of where they'll look today and in coming days.— Joe Person (@josephperson) March 16, 2021
This is encouraging news even if they didn’t sign them.
Tennessee got an underrated-as-hell lineman in Autry, who signed a three-year, $21.5 million bargain of a deal that earned an A+ grade from our friends at Titans Wire.
Davis is another quality under-the-radar defender. He posted five interceptions and 23 pass breakups for LA over the last two seasons while allowing a passer rating under 80 both years.
As Person alluded to, this is a good indication of where the Panthers will look next in free agency.
It’s especially important to add some more interior defensive line depth given Monday’s other news. The team released defensive tackle Zach Kerr to help make room for Elflein and Erving and is also not planning to tender DL Efe Obada, who put in solid work rotating to the interior in 2020.
With that in mind, here are a few of the top DTs on the market:
– Ndamukong Suh
– Kawann Short
– Jurrell Casey
– Quinton Jefferson
– Larry Ogunjobi
– Johnathan Hankins
Cornerback is an even more important roster need, though. At least there are still some good names available:
– Richard Sherman
– Troy Hill
– Quinton Dunbar
– Shaquill Griffin
– Bashaud Breeland
– Mike Hilton
Hopefully day two will bear more interesting fruit.
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