4 best value signings of the Carolina Panthers 2021 offseason

Denzel Perryman – Carolina Panthers LB

• 2021 cap hit – $1.99 million

Finding a successor to legendary linebacker Luke Kuechly following his shock retirement was a luckless task for the Carolina Panthers last year.

Any hopes they had for free-agent signing Tahir Whitehead evaporated quickly and even though things improved slightly when Jermaine Carter was brought into the lineup, a more consistent presence was needed moving forward.

Credit to the Panthers, who managed to get their top target on board and didn’t have to pay too much to do so. Denzel Perryman signed a two-year, $6 million deal to end his career with the Los Angeles Chargers, who drafted him in the second round out of Miami.

Perryman’s cap hit in 2021 stands at $1.99 million, which increases to just over $4 million in 2022.

If the player manages to hold down the second level better than anything Carolina saw from their options last season, then this is going to be one of the team’s biggest value signings in recent memory.

Much will depend on whether Perryman can remain healthy. He plays the game with a violence that is seldom seen in the modern-day player, which has brought its fair share of problems on the health front over the years.

That being said, Perryman’s ability in coverage, against the run, and generating pressure in opposing backfields is something that could help Carolina’s defense get over the hump and become a truly dominant unit if everything clicks right away.