4 personnel moves Scott Fitterer got right as Carolina Panthers GM

Carolina Panthers signed Frankie Luvu

Before Frankie Luvu came to the Carolina Panthers, he was an afterthought with the New York Jets. In his three years there, the explosive linebacker totaled 44 solo tackles, 59 combined tackles, sick sacks, nine tackles for a loss, and 16 quarterback hits. He appeared in 40 games but only started four. He was essentially a special teams guy who filled in when needed.

In the three years since joining the Panthers, Luvu looks like a different player entirely.

He's appeared in 48 games, 35 of which he's been a starter. Luvu's started 14 and 17 games in the last two seasons, respectively. Over that stretch, he's put up real numbers.

The former Washington State star racked up 168 solo tackles, 279 combined tackles, 14 sacks, 37 tackles for a loss, and 25 quarterback hits. He had the best pass-rushing grade (per Pro Football Focus) of any linebacker in football this year, and his overall defensive grade (78.5) was 14th-best, only one spot behind Baltimore Ravens' stud second-level presence Roquan Smith.

Luvu is due for quite the pay raise this offseason, and it's hard to say he hasn't earned it. The bigger question is whether the next Panthers general manager after Scott Fitterer feels as strongly about him as the recently fired front-office leader did.

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