Which defensive ends could the Carolina Panthers potentially target to put opposite Brian Burns in free agency?
The nightmare rollercoaster 2022 season and the Matt Rhule era as a whole are finally over for the Carolina Panthers. The team can now start looking forward to a hopefully prosperous future under a star-studded new coaching staff.
One integral part of the Panthers’ future is Brian Burns. A rising star that has been dimmed somewhat by subpar performance on the opposite side of the defensive line.
That isn’t to say that Burns was bad or even took a step back in 2022. Far from it, in fact.
The young standout continues to improve with each year and opportunity given. However, one can only imagine how different things would have been if there had been a suitable running mate on the team.
Haason Reddick was that piece for the Panthers in 2021 but was allowed to walk with hopes of Yetur Gross-Matos filling that void. We all saw how that went.
Reddick was part of the best pass rush in the NFL by a large margin while Gross-Matos contributed only a measly 2.5 sacks in 17 starts. Hardly an even swap and it showed in every big moment.
We can hope that the team has finally learned its lesson by letting superstar talents walk in hopes that younger, and cheaper, alternatives will do the trick. Only for it to blow up in their face time and time again.
So with that said, how can the team go about fixing that in an offseason full of questions at arguably more important positions? Here are four defensive ends the Panthers might target in free agency this spring.
Carolina Panthers could sign Yannick Ngakoue
No defensive end available this offseason should get more calls than the absolute game-wrecker that is Yannick Ngakoue.
A shockingly under-the-radar player for much of his career, Ngakoue has a truly spectacular ability to use speed to defeat even the best NFL offensive tackles. However, the player doesn’t let that speed advantage lead to overcommitting and breaking contain, something the Carolina Panthers struggled mightily with last season.
The main drawback of Ngakoue’s game is also the main attraction, namely that speed.
The imposing defensive end doesn’t use power or bull rush tactics to get the offensive line on the back foot and force them back into the quarterback. Instead, Ngakoue rushes around the edge before the tackle can even react and once that is ingrained in their mind, his inside moves can catch them off-guard.
This kind of rush pairs perfectly with Brian Burns on the other side who can use either power or speed to win 1-on-1 matchups. Carolina also has Derrick Brown collapsing the pocket with his massive amounts of sheer power.
Ngakoue is also squarely within the prime of their career at only 27 years old, something that would have to be appealing to a team trying to rebuild and not retool like the Panthers are at this point. The team needs building blocks, not one-year rentals.
Adding a 10-sack talent will not come cheap and the Panthers have plenty of other needs to consider at this point. However, this would be a dream come true for every fan.
Carolina Panthers could sign Justin Houston
Speaking of one-year rentals.
Justin Houston, while no longer in what would be considered the prime of their career, is still a force to be reckoned with along the edge. And quite possibly could be the exact opposite of Yannick Ngakoue.
Houston is not a speedy player anymore, that’s just not part of the toolbox at 34 years old. But that doesn’t mean that the savvy veteran isn’t productive – this fact was proven with a 9.5-sack season in 2022.
Speed may kill, but it isn’t everything.
Instead of rushing full bore at the quarterback like a lot of younger defensive ends, Houston lumbers into the backfield, taking stock of the situation and creating openings more so with shiftiness and an ability to read the play as it develops.
This type of savvy is shown perfectly in the player’s performance against the New Orleans Saints in which Houston was able to tally 2.5 sacks as well as an interception. A play where the veteran was able to see how things were developing and track down the ball after it was tipped.
Those are the types of things that Houston brings to the table, not only to contribute on the field but to teach younger players. The mentorship value alone is worth the price of admission, but for a move like this to truly pay off it depends on what the team does in the draft.
If the Panthers are able to bring in some young pass-rushing talent in the later rounds this offseason, then an addition like Houston would be a no-brainer.
Train up those young kids in the types of moves that will keep them in the league long past the time their speed no longer gives them an advantage. This is without even considering the things that Brian Burns could learn and add to his repertoire.
Pairing Burns with Houston would be an exciting proposition for the Carolina Panthers and a fun one to watch.
Carolina Panthers could sign Samson Ebukam
Samson Ebukam is an interesting target for the Carolina Panthers in that the player is in some ways very similar to Brian Burns in terms of playing style.
That isn’t to say that Ebukam is a superstar by any means, far from it. The player has shown promise but only tallied about half of what Burns was able to attain last season, and that was alongside Nick Bosa.
This was, however, the best season out of the defensive end to date and would still be a massive improvement over what the Panthers had last season. The risk in this move lies in the lack of true consistency.
Carolina has repeatedly taken chances on players hoping that they can perform better in a different system and it simply hasn’t worked out for them thus far. A trend that cannot continue if the Panthers want to hit the ground running under Frank Reich.
Should the Panthers even try to take a flyer on a player like Ebukam? The short answer is yes, but it comes with some fairly hefty asterisks.
A move to acquire the services of Ebukam would make sense in a couple of different scenarios and neither of which places the young defensive stud at the top of the priority list. The first situation is where Carolina has no other options available, and the second is that the team has simply run out of money and needs to go cheaper.
That doesn’t mean that Ebukam isn’t a talented player, the skills are there.
The defensive end shows great power and a motor that never seems to quit that pairs with a tenacity that doesn’t let a play end on the ground. The only concern is whether that can translate into the double-digit production that the Panthers need.
Carolina Panthers could sign Dante Fowler Jr.
A longtime thorn in the side of the Carolina Panthers could be exactly what the doctor ordered to help revitalize a defense that needs to take another step forward this season.
Dante Fowler Jr. may be a few seasons removed from the peak production with the Los Angeles Rams. But there is still plenty of treads left on the tires and his performance levels last year should only be encouraging.
In a secondary role with the Dallas Cowboys behind the superstar duo of Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, Fowler was able to rack up an impressive six sacks. This is no easy feat with those two taking the lion’s share of pass-rush opportunities.
Fowler has experience playing alongside a superstar and still being able to find the opportunities to make an impact. Something that could slot in very well alongside Brian Burns.
The Panthers need someone to compliment Burns, with Ejiro Evero’s scheme relying heavily on pressure from a 3-4 base system. Fowler should be relatively cheap if the Cowboys make the mistake of making the player available, not to mention it would be pretty sweet revenge to field them against the rival Atlanta Falcons.
This just might be a match made in heaven if the Panthers decide to make the decision and bring in the veteran running mate the team has sorely needed for years.