A fascinating few days await the Carolina Panthers. Dan Morgan and his staff are busy forming their plans heading into free agency. Moves have already been made and plenty more are on the way sooner rather than later.
The Panthers have a lot of hard work ahead. They made some encouraging strides over the second half of 2024, but this is far from the finished product. Morgan will be aggressive in pursuit of enhancing Ejiro Evero's historically bad defense. Adding to the weapons around quarterback Bryce Young should also be high on Carolina's list of priorities.
There isn't much money to spend right now, although that will likely increase once players get released or contracts get restructured. The Panthers have to do something drastic with Young entering his third season. They must capitalize on their newfound stability by finding the right recruits that fit into the team's new culture shift under head coach Dave Canales. Nothing else will do.
It'll be interesting to see what Morgan has up his sleeve. Some prominent names are being linked. The Panthers would also be wise to stay clear of some potential candidates (for differing reasons).
With this in mind, here are five free agents the Panthers should turn away from this offseason.
Free agents Carolina Panthers would ruin the 2025 offseason by signing
Carolina Panthers must avoid Mike Gesicki
The Carolina Panthers are looking for tight end help once again. It's been a carousel of veteran players and draft picks who couldn't fill the gaping void left by Greg Olsen. However, fourth-round pick Ja'Tavion Sanders showed enough promise last season to suggest he could be a long-term part of the team's plans.
Tommy Tremble and Ian Thomas will hit free agency this year and might not return. The Panthers would need an immediate difference-maker in this scenario, but those candidates shouldn't include Mike Gesicki.
The former second-round pick enjoyed a career renaissance with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2024. Gesicki got plenty of space to work underneath with Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins on the outside. Catching balls from an elite quarterback like Joe Burrow didn't hurt either.
That could see interest in Gesicki arrive from elsewhere. Having a dependable veteran capable of getting open consistently would help Bryce Young. Even so, his age and production before joining the Bengals in 2022 and 2023 leave enough reason for pessimism.
This is a deep draft class for tight ends. There are better options on the free-agent market, so it would be surprising if this one wasn't crossed off the shortlist.