4 free agents the Panthers should monitor on Championship Sunday
By Dean Jones
Which upcoming free agents should the Carolina Panthers keep a close eye on during the NFL’s Championship Sunday?
By the close of play on Sunday we will know who’ll be competing in this year’s Super Bowl. Championship weekend is always one of the most hotly anticipated spectacles on the league calendar and although the Carolina Panthers appear to be some way off from reaching this sort of level again, the decision-makers should be taking a keen interest in what transpires on the field.
This is down primarily to the number of quality free agents strutting their stuff on all four teams involved. The Panthers might not have as much in the way of salary-cap space available as they’d hoped due to COVID-19 revenue losses, but that doesn’t mean they couldn’t make sacrifices elsewhere in a bid to free up the funds needed to progress the roster.
New general manager Scott Fitterer and head coach Matt Rhule will already be working on a clear and structured plan to get Carolina back to prominence. However, they’ll have half an eye on this weekend’s games to see how certain players of interest perform under the spotlight.
With that being said, here are four 2021 free agents that the Panthers should be keeping a close eye on during Championship Sunday.
Player No. 1
Jon Feliciano – OL
The Carolina Panthers clearly need some help on their offensive line. Tying Taylor Moton down to a multi-year extension should be their top priority, but the future of the four other starters is far less certain.
Someone like Jon Feliciano could come in and make an instant impression. The former Miami standout has yet to give up a sack this season and has the versatility to play as a center or at one of the guard spots on the interior.
This is something that the Panthers looked for in almost every recruit during the previous offseason. So how Feliciano performs against a strong Chiefs defensive front on Sunday could have huge ramifications on his future and the sort of market he’ll generate if the Bills cannot agree to a new deal.