5 high-profile Panthers free agents who might not be back in 2022
By Dean Jones
Haason Reddick – Carolina Panthers OLB
The addition of Haason Reddick proved to be a shrewd bit of business by the Carolina Panthers in 2021 free agency. It was also a smart move on the player’s behalf to take a short-term deal in an unstable financial climate across the league in the hope of a bumper deal this time around.
As it turns out, that’s exactly what Reddick is going to do. The former first-round pick backed up his outstanding 2020 campaign with the Arizona Cardinals with an 11-sack season in Carolina, which takes his total to 23.5 quarterback takedowns over the last two years.
General manager Scott Fitterer stated during his media availability at the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine that Reddick will be allowed to test the free-agent market. Something that should see a lucrative offer come his way that the Panthers might not be able to match.
This would be a major blow if Reddick left for pastures new. His partnership with Brian Burns was prolific and given that the Temple product plans to bulk up to 250 pounds this offseason, there could be even more to come moving forward.
Carolina will make an offer in an attempt to get Reddick signed long-term, one suspects. However, the chances of a contending team with lofty cap space showing interest are high, which is bad news for a defensive front that did make some eye-catching strides during the previous campaign.