Grading Panthers’ first wave of free agency: Beefing up defense with much-needed signings
The Carolina Panthers have spent a lot of money over the past three days.
General manager Dan Morgan and football operations chief Brandt Tilis have been identifying and adding theoretical upgrades to improve the roster for the 2025 season. They’ve also re-signed a handful of key contributors from last year’s squad to help continue to build the culture in Carolina.
With all of that early activity, here is how The Observer grades out the front office’s moves in the first wave of free agency:
Tre’von Moehrig: Panthers add enforcer to secondary
The Panthers were abysmal against the run last season, giving up the most rushing yards in a season since 1980.
And while some would simply assume that defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero’s group was soft, the reality is the team had very little talent to work with because of a litany of injuries and underdeveloped depth. The defensive front (more on that later) and the safety groups were particularly underwhelming as units, and the Panthers were on a mission to upgrade both Monday.
Tre’von Moehrig, formerly of the Las Vegas Raiders, is a tone-setting defensive back. He’s about as physical as an NFL safety can be in the modern game. Moehrig is known for his run-stopping ability, as he has graded out as a top run defender by Pro Football Focus throughout a large portion of his four-year career. He also has understated playmaking skills with six career interceptions.
And while all that sounds nice, Moerhig’s two best qualities hit to the heart of the defense’s struggles over the past two years: He’s durable and he can properly tackle. Injuries and poor technique have killed this team in recent years, and if Moehrig can keep on keeping on as he’s done in the NFL, the Panthers will be better for it.
Moehrig agreed to a three-year, $51 million deal with the Panthers to start the legal tampering period. Based on his contract, Moehrig is the centerpiece of the Panthers’ free agency class. And while that might seem underwhelming, the free agency class wasn’t really filled with a ton of headliners following a string of notable re-signings around the league earlier this month.
Moehrig strikes me as a player who will be a fan-favorite addition. He’s a heavy hitter with attitude, and he could be a guy who brings some additional swagger not only to the secondary but also to the entire defense. While he’s been knocked a bit for his coverage ability, joining a zone-heavy defense should help him out in that regard, and his ability to blitz could add another wrinkle to Evero’s play calling on Sundays.
Prior to the legal tampering window, The Observer mentioned Moehrig as one of the more logical fits for the Panthers. Frankly, on paper, he was absolutely what they needed at the position.
Grade: A
Patrick Jones II: Carolina adds edge rusher to OLB depth chart
The Panthers came into free agency with a huge need at outside linebacker.
Jadeveon Clowney and D.J. Wonnum were fine last season, but the reality of the situation is that they combined for just 9.5 sacks in 2024. While Wonnum will come into the season healthy this year — and that should provide a boost in itself — the Panthers needed to add some talent to lift the ceiling and the floor of the depth chart.
Patrick Jones II, a rotational pass rusher with the Minnesota Vikings, should at least raise the floor of the unit. He is coming off a career year with seven sacks last season, and he has considerable experience on special teams. If the Panthers plan to use him similarly to Minnesota, Jones will weave in and out of the lineup on obvious passing downs. He has some flexibility at 6-foot-4 and 264 pounds, as he can rush inside with 4-3 fronts, giving Evero another wrinkle up front on third down.
Jones’ deal is for a base value of $15 million over two years, according to a league source. He can make up to $20 million with incentives.
The outlook for Jones is simple: If he blossoms into a productive pass rusher, he will be rewarded with playing time and a pay bump through incentives. If he’s simply here to play a role and does so, the Panthers aren’t on the hook for that much of a commitment. Those are the deals that make sense for the Panthers at this stage of their quest to contend.
At 26, Jones is an upside addition. He’s the type of target that a team with a 5-12 record and a need for multiple upgrades makes when it wants to spread the wealth throughout the depth chart. He’s not a game changer, he might not even be a consistent sack artist, but he’s a logical addition who has shown flashes in his first four years.
And by the way, his seven sacks last season would have led the Panthers last year.
Grade: C+
Bobby Brown III: Finally! A run-stopping nose tackle
The Panthers were notably outbid for former Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams on Monday.
After reports flooded social media that a deal was done with Williams and the Panthers, the interior pass rusher ended up agreeing to an eye-opening contract with the New England Patriots instead.
With a notable need on the defensive line, the Panthers then turned their attention to a talent that has the opposite skills of their initial target. Bobby Brown III isn’t a pass rusher — he’s a road-grading nose tackle who is built like a truck.
The 6-4, 332-pound lineman is in Carolina to stop the run, first and foremost. And at just 24, he has the upside to develop into a bit of a pass-rushing option as well.
Brown agreed to a three-year, $21 million deal, according to a league source. While he won’t be expected to have an impact on the passing game right away, he gives the Panthers a traditional 3-4 nose tackle presence. He will be a two-down lineman, who rotates in an upgraded unit.
Brown played for new outside linebackers coach A.C. Carter in Los Angeles. Carter served as the assistant defensive line coach with the Rams for the past two years, and he worked directly with Brown during that tenure. The Panthers know what to expect with Brown, and that’s a big plus in this deal.
On paper, Brown is a massive upgrade over incumbent starting nose tackle Shy Tuttle. He’s also significantly younger with upside worth exploring.
Grade: B+
Tershawn Wharton: Two-time Super Bowl champ joins the trenches
Even with the Panthers’ signing of Brown, Carolina needed more juice on the defensive line. Tershawn Wharton seemingly turned out to be the team’s answer to missing out on Williams.
The team reached a three-year, $45 million agreement with Wharton on Monday, according to league sources. He has incentives in his contract that could see him make as much as $54 million. And while Wharton is nowhere near the talent that Williams is, he does complement Brown very well as a pass-rushing specialist.
The 6-1, 280-pound defender will probably rotate with Brown like a platoon of left- and right-handed outfielders in baseball.
Derrick Brown will be the primary starter on the line, while Wharton and Bobby Brown, along with A’Shawn Robinson and Tuttle — who took a pay cut this week — will rotate with and around them.
Wharton, a two-time Super Bowl winner in Kansas City, has produced 13.5 sacks over the past five seasons. He makes sense as a role-specific player, similar to Jones. The Panthers want to platoon their defensive line groups to keep guys fresh throughout the season, which is a practice that a lot of perennial contenders tend to go with.
By himself, Wharton feels like a clearly overpaid addition. But as part of an upgraded line, if everyone stays relatively healthy, he could make a big impact.
Grade: C
Sam Martin: Swapping out aging punters
The Panthers swapped out 35-year-old punters Tuesday.
The team reached a one-year deal with former Buffalo Bills punter Sam Martin shortly before the Tennessee Titans reached a one-year agreement with Johnny Hekker ahead of free agency.
While Martin had a better season than Hekker last year, it was a bit surprising to see the Panthers go with another aging specialist over one with apparent upside like Ryan Stonehouse, who ironically was replaced by Hekker in Tennessee.
Martin, an Appalachian State alum, has been in the league for 12 seasons and averaged 46.2 yards per punt. He averaged 46.7 yards per punt last year, while Hekker average 45.7 per attempt.
It’s also a tad odd the Panthers didn’t just hold out for the draft here, as the rookie class is expected to have some NFL-worthy talent. Perhaps they didn’t want to play two rookie specialists in 2025.
Grade: C
Christian Rozeboom: Linebacker depth with experience
The Panthers desperately needed depth at inside linebacker. Even more so, they needed depth with experience following the departure of longtime veteran leader Shaq Thompson.
On Wednesday, the team agreed to terms with former Los Angeles Rams linebacker Christian Rozeboom. The agreement is for a $2 million fully guaranteed base salary with $1.5 million in playing time incentives, Rozeboom’s agent, Chris Gittings, told The Observer.
That agreement implies that while Rozeboom could push last year’s third-round pick Trevin Wallace for a starting job, the veteran is more likely to be used as a third linebacker and special teams ace in 2025. While Wallace and Josey Jewell will probably lead the first-team defense, Rozeboom has enough experience and talent to fill in for either player due to injury or poor play.
Through four NFL seasons with the Rams and Chiefs, Rozeboom has played 61 games with 16 starts, collecting 225 tackles, a sack, five QB hits and two interceptions. He’s coming off a career season, as he started 11 of 17 games for Los Angeles, while posting 135 tackles, a sack and an interception.
Rozeboom is an upgrade as the third linebacker over Claudin Cherelus, who will also return as a depth linebacker. The 6-2, 237-pound linebacker has played over 1,000 special teams snaps in his career, and he should help coordinator Tracy Smith on that unit as well.
This move also won’t preclude the Panthers from taking a linebacker in April’s draft.
Grade: B-
Rico Dowdle: A quick replacement for Miles Sanders
The Panthers released running back Miles Sanders on Tuesday. On Wednesday, they filled his spot with former Dallas Cowboys running back Rico Dowdle.
The swap leaves the Panthers with an arguably better complement to starting running back Chuba Hubbard. While Sanders was a letdown on a multiple-year deal, Dowdle is looking to boost his value on a one-year pact that could benefit everyone involved. He reportedly has incentives that could nearly double his base salary, and so he should be as motivated as ever to repeat his 2024 success in Dallas.
The Panthers clearly believe in building around the running game. That’s why they drafted Jonathon Brooks in the second round of last year’s draft. That’s why they paid Hubbard in the middle of his breakout season. And it’s also why they’ve just added Dowdle on a pretty reasonable contract.
Cutting Sanders saved the Panthers over $5 million in cap space, and they have turned around and given a deal of lesser value to Dowdle with the possibility of an end-of-season raise.
That’s smart cap allocation. Dowdle is also coming off a 1,000-yard season and can keep Hubbard fresh throughout the season.
Grade: B+
Jaycee Horn: A franchise pillar extended
In recent years, the Panthers have gained a reputation for trading away good young talent. From Christian McCaffrey to DJ Moore to Brian Burns, the Panthers have traded away some notable former first-round picks in the prime of their respective careers.
In the past 12 months or so, Morgan has taken some steps to alleviate concerns about trading away homegrown talent. He extended Pro Bowl defensive end Derrick Brown during the first week of free agency last year after trading away Burns, and now he’s locked up another pillar with the new four-year, $100 million extension for cornerback Jaycee Horn.
The deal for Horn was extremely expensive but necessary. While some could argue his injury history (he missed 31 of 68 games in his first four seasons) should have given the team pause, it’s abundantly clear that Horn, who made his first Pro Bowl this past season, is an upper-echelon cornerback when healthy.
Yes, the 2021 first-round pick set the market at cornerback, which might surprise some after reigning defensive player of the year Patrick Surtain II just got a deal, but that’s the way it works in the NFL.
If the Panthers would have waited for Derek Stingley Jr. and/or Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner to receive contract extensions — they are eligible this offseason — then Carolina would have paid even more for Horn once a new deal was agreed upon.
So, the Panthers got ahead of a pair of monster extensions at the position, and have a No. 1 cornerback for the foreseeable future.
Grade: B+
Internal re-signings: Jackson, Tremble, Corbett and Christensen
So far, the Panthers have retained their incumbent talent, for the most part, at desirable rates.
Re-signing cornerback Mike Jackson to a two-year, $14.5 million deal might have been Tilis’ best work of the week. His one-year pacts with offensive linemen Austin Corbett and Brady Christensen were not only low risk, but low spending as well.
Some fans have been critical of tight end Tommy Tremble’s deal, but he is still only 24 and signed for a reasonable rate of $10.5 million over two years.
Corbett and Tremble have pretty notable incentives in their contracts, too. So not only are they retained by the team, but they are motivated to earn more income as well.
Grade: B+
Overall grade: Defense is better, but still work to be done
The Panthers, for the most part, lived up to their offseason messaging of “aggressive but smart” in the first wave of free agency.
The defense added an upgrade at safety, a genuine 3-4 nose tackle, a solid third inside linebacker, and two situational pass rushers — one on the interior and another on the edge — in the first three days. The team also re-signed a handful of worthwhile incumbent contributors, including probable starters at center, cornerback and tight end.
Plus, they easily replaced Sanders with an arguably better starting-caliber running back.
There are still a lot of holes to fill, but Morgan and Tilis are off to a solid enough start to feel optimistic about an improved roster.
First wave grade: B
This story was originally published March 13, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
