3 difficult decisions remaining for Carolina Panthers GM Dan Morgan in 2024

How Carolina Panthers approach remaining free agents

According to Over the Cap, the Carolina Panthers have a hair over $18 million in salary cap space right now. They have $91.38 million in 2025 as well, which is a hefty amount. During the first few waves of free agency this year, Dan Morgan was aggressive on both sides of the ball. Will he keep that up throughout the offseason?

There is one distinct reason to and one distinct reason not to.

In many instances, an NFL team has been able to take advantage of a quarterback on their rookie contract. This allows a franchise to spend more on other parts of the roster The ultimate goal is to squeeze out a Super Bowl in that window. The Kansas City Chiefs did it in 2019 with Patrick Mahomes, but others aren't so lucky.

The Cincinnati Bengals made the big dance in 2021 with Joe Burrow on his rookie deal, and the Philadelphia Eagles also made the Super Bowl in 2022 with Jalen Hurts. The Panthers are unlikely to be contenders in 2024 with Bryce Young, but consideration does have to be made for the former No. 1 pick making a Year 2 leap.

Does Morgan want to continue spending in free agency in hopes that the additions help Young make that leap? Or, on the flip side, should he simply just stay put? The one downside of these top-dollar free-agent contracts is - while they're fun when they happen - the financials eventually catch up to the team.

Morgan could bet on Young and take the financial advantage of that. It's not clear one way or another what route he should take. There are still quite a few talented free agents left on the market, and there also might be some player cuts as we progress further into the NFL offseason.