4 possible Panthers targets who could be released ahead of time
By Dean Jones
Anthony Barr – OLB
- 2020 team – Minnesota Vikings
Another team that goes into the 2021 offseason with some real money problems is the Minnesota Vikings. They have a bunch of established veterans on good salaries that their production doesn’t really warrant and it could see the organization ring the changes as they continue to go younger across their roster.
The Vikings have a boatload of NFL Draft picks despite giving up their second-rounder in the Yannick Ngakoue trade – which didn’t exactly go according to plan – so they might feel some prominent locker room presences can be moved on without jeopardizing their short and long-term plans.
One such player is Anthony Barr. The outside linebacker featured in just two games this season due to injury and cutting him loose would give Minnesota an extra $7.26 million to work with moving forward.
They are currently projected to be $4.6 million over the cap – so this works out pretty well for all parties involved.
The Carolina Panthers could use some additional options at the second level and if Barr’s not demanding the earth given the payoff he’ll receive from the Vikings, then he does have the athleticism that could be of some use to a young defense that made some real strides as the campaign went on.