Carolina Panthers: New defensive tackle is staring them in the face

Jarran Reed’s potential

There is no doubt that Jarran Reed has more than lived up to his billing as a second-round pick out of Alabama. He is a force to be reckoned with getting after the quarterback and although his run defense has been questioned at times, this is a player with a significant amount going for him.

Reed is a disruptive force on the interior, to put it mildly. The defensive tackle is incredibly difficult to block one-on-one and seems to be able to come up with big plays almost at will.

Even though Reed was said to have a down year in 2020 for the Seattle Seahawks, the veteran still managed 6.5 sacks, 38 tackles, eight tackles for loss, 14 quarterback hits, and 22 pressures from 74 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. This resulted in a modest 56.3 grade from Pro Football Focus, which was largely down to his regression in run support and the 11.6 percent of missed tackles during the campaign.

It’s clear a fresh start was needed for Reed, which the Carolina Panthers would be foolish not to explore. He is just entering his prime for players at the position and a new environment might be just what the player needs to get back to the form of old.

Just why things went so sour between Reed and the Seahawks is up for debate. But their loss might be the Panthers’ gain if a potential deal can be reached.