'The Great Panthers Punter Search of 2016' ended Monday when Carolina sent Cleveland Kasey Redfern and a 2018 fourth-round pick in exchange for 3-time Pro Bowler Andy Lee and a 2017 seventh-round pick.
Yeah, not only was it a rare punter swamp, but the Panthers gave up a future fourth-rounder. That's a hefty price for a punter.
Lee, who signed a 6-year, $20.2 million extension with the 49ers in 2012, is still owed $10.4 million over the next three seasons.
The Panthers didn't want to give Brad Nortman what he was asking for this spring, but the 4-year, $8.8 million dollar deal he signed in Jacksonville would be a bargain compared to what Lee's getting.
After San Francisco had taken Lee in the sixth round of the 2004 draft, he was the longest-tenured 49er until June 2015. That's when he was traded to the Browns for a conditional seventh-round pick in 2017.
Lee was made expendable in San Francisco by fifth-round pick Bradley Pinion, a North Carolina native who ironically was the Panthers' "Punt, Pass & Kick" winner in 2007 and 2008.
Lee turned 34 this month. But last season — his 12th in the league — he set Browns' single-season records with a 46.7-yard gross average and a 40.1-yard net average.
Among all-time stats: Lee is sixth in gross punting average (46.2), eighth in net average (39.5) and ninth in punts inside the 20 (325).
Browns coach Hue Jackson wasn't pleased with Lee's effort on this preseason play in Tampa:
There's nobody there!@adamhumphries13 takes the punt back 73 yards TO THE HOUSE! #CLEvsTB https://t.co/eLe5ZyPixY
— NFL (@NFL) August 27, 2016
Lee and his wife, Rachel, are both from South Carolina. He grew up in Westminster. She's from Columbia. They already have a permanent home in Charlotte where they're raising their two sons.
The Lees had a daughter, Madelyn, in January 2015. But after developing an infection, she passed away just eight days later.
Lee embraced those days when he switched to No. 8 from No. 4, which he wore his first 11 seasons.
Before Monday's trade, the Panthers didn't have a No. 8 on their roster.
Read about Madelyn's Fund.