4 worst offseason moves by the Carolina Panthers
By Dean Jones
Worst offseason moves by the Carolina Panthers: Trading Trai Turner
The Carolina Panthers took the bizarre decision to trade away perennial Pro Bowl guard Trai Turner to the Los Angeles Chargers in exchange for veteran left tackle Russell Okung. This leaves a gaping hole in the interior. And it remains to be seen whether the likes of John Miller and Michael Schofield can fill the void.
Turner emerged quickly as one of the most dominant offensive guards in the NFL after Carolina allocated a third-round pick to acquire his services out of LSU. Turner had five Pro Bowl appearances in just six seasons as a professional. And he was equally adept at protecting in either running or passing situations.
There are plenty of questions surrounding Okung going into 2020. The experienced figure will be tasked with protecting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s blindside. And he has suffered his fair share of injury problems in recent seasons.
One can only suspect that this particular move had a lot to do with the financial aspect. Okung is heading into the final year of his deal and will take off $13 million from the Panthers’ salary cap in 2021 if they decide not to keep him around. This sort of money could be vital to their overall rebuild and probably played a significant part in their eventual decision to move Turner on.
Turner will no doubt continue to thrive on the Chargers, who could have their star rookie quarterback Justin Herbert on the field at some point during the campaign.