The Panthers say they want to retool their roster to be competitive in 2020. The ugly truth is that Carolina needs to be 100% committed to a rebuild.
Delusions of grandeur are a dangerous thing in the NFL. That’s exactly the sin the Carolina Panthers are guilty of if they believe they can be legitimate playoff contenders in 2020.
Instead, the right path for first year head coach Matt Rhule is to focus completely on a roster rebuild. In fairness to the organization, Luke Kuechly’s early retirement and Cam Newton’s bad injury luck have forced the Panthers into this position. The NFL isn’t always fair though. It’s time for Carolina to take their medicine.
Cutting ties with Newton was a step in the right direction. Letting other high price free agents like James Bradberry, Gerald McCoy and Dontari Poe also made it seem like the Panthers were fully committed to embracing the suck of their 2020 campaign.
Other moves make it unclear exactly what Carolina’s intentions are. Signing Teddy Bridgewater to a modest, but meaningful contract was a solid piece of business in the abstract. Critics of the move could also point out that signing a veteran quarterback to a multi-year deal means the Panthers won’t be working to find their franchise signal caller of the future anytime soon.
The decision to give Christian McCaffrey a big money extension raised even more eyebrows. A certain portion of NFL executives are against paying any running back a premium salary. The Panthers clearly believe McCaffrey’s value transcends the position. No matter what, the team is still tying up a lot of their cap space in a player squarely in the prime of his career.
To date, the Panthers still can’t be accused of making any move that doesn’t fit into a total rebuild. The key for the front office will be to lean into the idea during the draft. Specifically, that means the Panthers need to initiate a complete overhaul of their hapless defense.
Kuechly’s early retirement isn’t close to the biggest issue the defense faces at the moment. The issues for the unit start up front. Neither McCoy or Poe was productive for the Panthers last season, but they still played the majority of the team’s snaps at defensive tackle. The team hopes that Kawann Short can come back and play like a Pro Bowler, but expecting him to do so into his 30s is more of a wish than a plan.
That’s why so many mock drafts have the team taking Auburn defensive tackle Derrick Brown with the No. 7 pick. That certainly makes sense, but ignores the sheer number of needs the team still has on the defensive side of the ball.
Cornerback is arguably just as large a need as defensive tackle. The departure of Bradberry leaves the Panthers without a viable No. 1 option at the position. Donte Jackson is fine as a No. 2 corner, but he lacks the size necessary to combat the other team’s best receiver. Carolina desperately needs to find an immediate starter at cornerback in the early rounds of the draft too.
That’s why trading down is the move the Panthers need to try desperately to make. It’s not going to thrill a fan base that’s still suffering from the departures of so many big name stars, but it’s the right move for a roster that isn’t ready to compete. It’s time for Carolina to embrace the suck. Anything less will just extend the amount of time the Panthers are going to spend at the bottom of the NFC South.