3 reasons the Carolina Panthers shouldn’t re-sign Donte Jackson
By Jason Huber
Donte Jackson’s asking price might be too high for the Carolina Panthers
Even though he’s been inconsistent, Donte Jackson hasn’t been bad. He’s still young, is extremely fast, and has had big moments in pivotal stages of games.
However, as Jackson has said time and time again, he believes he’s one of the best cornerbacks in the league and feels he should be paid like one.
He might have lost some money with his play the past few weeks and his ongoing injury troubles. But there will be a team that gives Jackson close to what he wants given that top cornerbacks are at a premium across the league.
Currently, Jalen Ramsey is the highest-paid cornerback in the league, averaging $20 million per year. The tenth highest paid is Marcus Peters at $14 million per season.
Jackson will likely want a deal averaging somewhere be $14 and $20 million per year, which is a tough ask for a Carolina Panthers team that already has so much outstanding dead money.
The Panthers also will have to make decisions on whether to give that money to Stephon Gilmore. If not, they still have young cornerbacks in C.J. Henderson and Jaycee Horn, who will be under team control for a few more years.
With those two cornerbacks alone, Jackson might be expendable. And letting him walk would free up funds to strengthen other areas.