Panthers agree to huge deal with former Eagles pass rusher Jaelan Phillips
The Carolina Panthers have their sights set on a massive upgrade at the edge position.
The team agreed to terms with former Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles pass rusher Jaelan Phillips on a four-year, $120 million deal on Monday, a pair of league sources confirmed to The Charlotte Observer. Phillips won’t be able to officially sign the contract until Wednesday at 4 p.m. at the start of the new league year.
ESPN initially reported the deal, which features $80 million in guaranteed money.
Phillips, once the signing becomes official, will join an outside linebacker group that already features Nic Scourton, Princely Umanmielen and Pat Jones. Phillips should be positioned at the top of depth chart alongside Scourton.
Who is Jaelan Phillips?
Phillips, 26, split last season between the Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles traded a third-round pick to acquire Phillips at the NFL trade deadline in November.
During his eight games with Philadelphia, the 2021 first-round pick produced 28 tackles, two sacks, four pass breakups and a forced fumble.
The former Miami Hurricanes standout has 28 sacks, 11 pass breakups, 68 QB hits and an interception on his NFL resume.
Phillips has a notable injury history. He had his 2023 cut short due to an Achilles tear. He then tore his ACL in the middle of the 2024 season, but he played in a full 17-game season in 2025.
Why did the Panthers pounce on Phillips in free agency?
The Panthers were tied for 29th in sacks in each of the past two seasons. While Phillips’ sack numbers aren’t particularly compelling, his ability to create pressure is notable. Phillips produced 73 total pressures in 17 games last season, per Pro Football Focus.
With Phillips’ ability to impact the pass, his new teammates can take advantage with sacks of their own. The pressure can also lead to poor decisions and throws by opposing quarterbacks, which in turn, can lead to interceptions, pass breakups and even forced fumbles.
Phillips was particularly effective under defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s guidance in Miami and Philadelphia. The Eagles traded for Phillips partially because of how impactful he was under Fangio in 2023 in Miami. Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero uses a comparable system to Fangio, as Evero studied under him early in his NFL coaching career and adopted the scheme when he became a coordinator with the Denver Broncos in 2022.
Phillips had 6.5 sacks in just eight games with Fangio before he tore his Achilles in Miami in 2023. With a 4.57-second 40-yard dash dating back to the 2021 NFL Scouting Combine, Phillips also has the ability to match tight ends in coverage. Evero tends to flex his rushers in coverage in different packages, so the new recruit should be able to handle that responsibility as well.
Phillips should have a notable impact on Scourton, who has proven to be an ascending strong-side edge rusher. Umanmielen is likely to rotate behind both starters with Jones, a versatile front-seven player, this season.
The Panthers spent big money — a $30 million average annual salary — on Phillips. But given GM Dan Morgan’s ties to the University of Miami and Evero’s ties to Fangio, the Panthers likely felt like they had enough research to back their big play. Phillips’ notable injury history will hover over his early days in Carolina, but the full season in 2025 was clearly enough for the franchise to pony up a massive contract agreement.
The team entered free agency with a projected cap space just under $9 million, according to Over the Cap. So, the team is likely to do some roster reworking — via departures and restructures — before the new league starts on Wednesday at 4 p.m.
This story was originally published March 9, 2026 at 12:56 PM.
