Panthers got one of NFL’s best edge rushers on a bargain; Reddick knows his time will come
Haason Reddick knows his time is coming.
He had the best season of his career in 2020 with the Arizona Cardinals after finishing with a career-high 12.5 sacks, 15 tackles for loss and six forced fumbles. All were top five in the league.
Yet, when he entered free agency, he wasn’t among the edge rushers signing lucrative long-term deals. In fact, the Carolina Panthers got him for a bargain — a one-year, $8 million deal with $6 million guaranteed.
Reddick, though, says he wasn’t worried about that.
“I never measure myself based off what another man has, or what another man has gotten,” Reddick said Tuesday. “That’s not the way I live life. Everybody got their deals this year, congratulations to them.
“But I’m going to go out there and do my numbers and it will be my time.”
Even though it was the best year of his career, one of the criticisms of Reddick was that he only played one year in the NFL as an edge rusher.
Before the 2020 season, Reddick had primarily played off-ball linebacker, a position he was unfamiliar with entering the league. At Temple, under Matt Rhule and defensive coordinator Phil Snow, he was always an edge rusher.
The Cardinals moved him to edge rusher during the 2020 season, and he excelled. He had five sacks in a Week 13 win against the New York Giants and won NFC defensive player of the week honors.
“I was put back into my natural position,” he said, when asked why he was able to be so successful. “That’s where I belong. That’s where my skills, my talent shines the most.”
Reddick, who is 6-foot-1, 235 pounds, said part of the reason he joined the Panthers was the familiarity with Rhule and Snow, and former Temple teammate P.J. Walker.
But what was most important was how the Panthers plan to use him. He said the Panthers will use him primarily as an edge rusher and not an inside linebacker.
“That’s what I do best, and that’s what I’m most comfortable at,” he said.
Reddick joins a young defense which showed promise in 2020. Defensive end Brian Burns finished with 8.5 sacks and three forced fumbles in 2020. Jeremy Chinn was a candidate for defensive rookie of the year. The Panthers shut out the Lions in Week 11, and held NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers to a season-low in passing yards in Week 15.
Reddick says he’s looking forward to adding onto that and making plays for the Panthers.
“Looking at the defense and all of the pieces being brought in throughout free agency, it’s crazy,” Reddick said. “If we can get together and mesh well, man, it can be a beautiful thing for this defense.”
This story was originally published March 23, 2021 at 7:08 PM.
