Carolina Panthers agree to re-sign key defensive player

Sean Chandler was gearing up to become an unrestricted free agent. Instead, he agreed to a deal to stay with the Carolina Panthers.

The Panthers agreed to a one-year deal with Chandler, they announced Tuesday morning. He was a key piece of the Carolina defense in 2021, appearing in 15 games — including seven starts. He totaled 48 tackles and a forced fumble while splitting time on defense and special teams.

Chandler played college football at Temple from 2015-17 and went to the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2018. He played in New York from 2018-20 before joining Carolina prior to the 2021 season. Now, he’s staying with the Panthers.

There could be more moves coming for Carolina, though. The Panthers are reportedly in on Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, and he reportedly planned a meeting with them this week about a potential trade. In fact, Tuesday morning — shortly before the Chandler deal became official — a report shed light on Carolina’s plan if Watson ends up in Charlotte.

NFL insider reveals how Christian McCaffrey could impact Panthers pursuit of Deshaun Watson

It is pretty well known that the Carolina Panthers are involved in the Deshaun Watson sweepstakes. While the package to acquire Watson would be substantial, the potential involvement of running back Christian McCaffrey could potentially have major impacts on the likelihood of a deal.

But on Tuesday morning, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that the Panthers would like to hold onto McCaffrey instead of including him in a deal for Watson.

“Christian McCaffrey has been the subject of trade rumors, but it’s my understanding that the Panthers would want to keep McCaffrey to bolster the offense around Deshaun Watson,” Fowler said. “Perhaps Houston requires him in the deal, but the goal is to surround Watson with best weapons.”

As Fowler said, McCaffrey’s name has popped up during trade talks this offseason. McCaffrey is one of the NFL’s best offensive weapons when healthy, but he has seriously struggled to stay on the field in recent years. He rushed for 1,098 yards and seven touchdowns while adding 107 receptions for 867 yards and six more touchdowns in 2018. In 2019, McCaffrey rushed for 1,387 yards and 15 touchdowns, adding 116 receptions for 1,005 yards and four touchdowns.

McCaffrey was named an All-Pro and a Pro Bowler for his strong 2019 season. After that year, he signed a four-year, $64 million contract extension with the Panthers, making him the NFL’s highest paid running back on an annual basis. But he hasn’t been able to stay healthy since. McCaffrey has played in just ten games over the past two seasons.