Did holdout threat speed up Christian McCaffrey extension?
By Dean Jones
Did the possibility of Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey holding out speed up the process behind his bumper new deal?
There is no denying that Christian McCaffrey was deserving of a long extension from the Carolina Panthers following an exceptional start to his NFL career. The do-it-all running back is now officially the face of the franchise and will now be paid as such.
McCaffrey signed a four-year, $64 million deal that included a $21 million signing bonus and just over $38 million guaranteed. This ties the player to the Carolina Panthers until 2025 and was a huge statement of intent from the organization and their ambitious plans for the future.
Having the dual-threat back going into the final year of his rookie deal without a longer-term commitment would have come with its own complications. According to USA Today, McCaffrey was reportedly willing to miss some OTAs this offseason in a bid to speed up the process surrounding a new contract.
"“I really didn’t want to miss any meetings. But I was definitely willing to and I think everybody knew that.”"
If the Carolina Panthers front-office knew that McCaffrey was willing to miss some offseason preparation time. This might have played a significant part in the player receiving a new deal when he did.
This is a franchise that has undergone significant changes in recent months and the last thing head coach Matt Rhule would have wanted is for his star player to hold out during a critical stage in his planning process.
Thankfully, it did not come to this. And McCaffrey now has the added security of knowing he is taken care of financially as he looks to build on what has been a Hall of Fame start to his career.