The Carolina Panthers hadn’t signed a player after Tuesday afternoon’s start of free agency until they gave cornerback Teddy Williams a contract Thursday night. But his was the 13th deal done in a span of 24 days. Comparing the same timeframe in Dave Gettleman’s tenure as Panthers general manager, he gave out just three deals from mid-February-March 12 in 2013, and last year that total raised slightly to five.To get an even wider view, let’s break down all the deals made during the same period over the last three years. Looking through a one-month window and in one-year increments is obviously an incomplete picture of a team that has to plan at least a couple years ahead, but it’s still an interesting glimpse.The data below is from Over The Cap and Spotrac, and to be clear, the numbers aren’t official.
2013
| SIGNED BY 4/10/13 |
CONTRACT |
2013 BASE SALARY |
GUARANTEED MONEY |
2013 CAP NUMBER |
| DT Dwan Edwards |
2 years |
$850,000 |
$1,200,000 |
$1,600,000 |
| WR Domenik Hixon |
1 year |
$725,000 |
$437,500 |
$1,162,500 |
| WR Ted Ginn |
1 year |
$750,000 |
$350,000 |
$1,100,000 |
| CB Captain Munnerlyn |
1 year |
$750,000 |
$350,000 |
$1,100,000 |
| S Mike Mitchell |
1 year |
$725,000 |
$275,000 |
$1,000,000 |
| LB Chase Blackburn |
2 years |
$850,000 |
$200,000 |
$1,000,000 |
| TE Ben Hartsock |
1 year |
$840,000 |
$65,000 |
$620,000 |
| CB D.J. Moore |
1 year |
$715,000 |
$65,000 |
$620,000 |
| LB Jordan Senn |
1 year |
$715,000 |
$65,000 |
$620,000 |
| DT Colin Cole |
1 year |
$840,000 |
|
$620,000 |
| QB Derek Anderson |
1 year |
$840,000 |
|
$555,000 |
| CB Drayton Florence |
1 year |
$940,000 |
|
$489,706 |
| WR James Shaw |
1 year |
$405,000 |
|
$405,000 |
| TOTAL |
|
$9,945,000 |
$3,007,500 |
$10,842,206 |
2014
| SIGNED BY 4/11/14 |
CONTRACT |
2014 BASE SALARY |
GUARANTEED MONEY |
2014 CAP NUMBER |
| DE Greg Hardy |
Franchise |
$13,116,000 |
$13,116,000 |
$13,116,000 |
| K Graham Gano |
4 years |
$950,000 |
$3,950,000 |
$1,750,000 |
| WR Jerricho Cotchery |
2 years |
$1,250,000 |
$2,250,000 |
$1,700,000 |
| S Roman Harper |
2 years |
$950,000 |
$1,500,000 |
$1,518,750 |
| S Thomas DeCoud |
2 years |
$900,000 |
$500,000 |
$1,353,750 |
| DT Colin Cole |
1 year |
$855,000 |
$175,000 |
$1,121,875 |
| QB Derek Anderson |
2 years |
$875,000 |
$400,000 |
$1,100,000 |
| WR Jason Avant |
1 year |
$855,000 |
$150,000 |
$1,050,000 |
| WR Tiquan Underwood |
2 years |
$750,000 |
$300,000 |
$925,000 |
| TE Richie Brockel |
2 years |
$650,000 |
$150,000 |
$755,000 |
| TE Mike McNeill |
2 years |
$660,000 |
$100,000 |
$660,000 |
| CB James Dockery |
1 year |
$645,000 |
|
$660,000 |
| DE Alex Hall |
1 year |
$645,000 |
$10,000 |
$655,000 |
| CB Antoine Cason |
1 year |
$730,000 |
$65,000 |
$635,000 |
| TE Ed Dickson |
1 year |
$730,000 |
$65,000 |
$635,000 |
| QB Joe Webb |
1 year |
$730,000 |
$65,000 |
$635,000 |
| LB Jason Williams |
1 year |
$715,000 |
|
$570,000 |
| OT Garry Williams |
1 year |
$421,882 |
$75,000 |
$551,882 |
| S Anderson Russell |
1 year |
$495,000 |
|
$495,000 |
| TOTAL |
|
$26,992,882 |
$22,871,000 |
$29,887,257 |
2015
| SIGNED BY 4/10/15 |
CONTRACT |
2015 BASE SALARY |
GUARANTEED MONEY |
2015 CAP NUMBER |
| TE Greg Olsen |
Extension |
$900,000* |
$12,000,000 |
$6,300,000* |
| OT Michael Oher |
2 years |
$850,000 |
$2,500,000 |
$2,421,875 |
| WR Ted Ginn |
2 years |
$900,000 |
$1,700,000 |
$1,850,000 |
| DT Dwan Edwards |
2 years |
$1,000,000 |
$1,000,000 |
$1,750,000 |
| CB Charles Tillman |
1 year |
$1,000,000 |
$350,000 |
$1,531,250 |
| TE Ed Dickson |
3 years |
$715,000 |
$2,000,000 |
$1,516,666 |
| S Kurt Coleman |
2 years |
$750,000 |
$600,000 |
$1,290,625 |
| OT Jonathan Martin |
Inherited |
$1,042,400 |
|
$1,042,400 |
| WR Jarrett Boykin |
1 year |
$660,000 |
$20,000 |
$700,000 |
| CB Teddy Williams |
2 years |
$900,000 |
$220,000 |
$680,000 |
| DT Colin Cole |
1 year |
$970,000 |
$80,000 |
$665,000 |
| QB Joe Webb |
1 year |
$745,000 |
$80,000 |
$665,000 |
| OL Chris Scott |
1 year |
$745,000 |
$80,000 |
$665,000 |
| LB Jason Trusnik |
1 year |
$870,000 |
$80,000 |
$665,000 |
| RB Fozzy Whittaker |
2 years |
$585,000 |
$50,000 |
$635,000 |
| RB Jordan Todman |
1 year |
$745,000 |
$20,000 |
$605,000 |
| LB Ben Jacobs |
1 year |
$585,000 |
|
$585,000 |
| WR Brenton Bersin |
1 year |
$510,000 |
|
$510,000 |
| C Brian Folkerts |
1 year |
$510,000 |
|
$510,000 |
| TOTAL |
|
$14,082,400 |
$20,780,000 |
$18,287,816 |
*Not included in total
NOTES
- The totals are new money added, so Greg Olsen’s base salary and cap number aren’t included in the 2015 total. The Panthers actually lowered each when Olsen signed his three-year extension last week, including a savings of $1.5 million toward the cap.
- Taking out Olsen’s deal, it’s interesting to compare 2015 vs. 2014. The 12 other players the Panthers signed this month are guaranteed a total of $7.7 million with a cap hit of $12.5 million. Greg Hardy alone cost $13.1 million last year.
- What the Panthers spent from March 13 up to the draft each of the last two years:
- 2013 – 10 new contracts (ex: Drayton Florence, Mike Mitchell) with a total cap commitment of $9.2 million.
- 2014 – 14 new contracts (ex: Jerricho Cotchery, Roman Harper) with a total cap number of $11.1 million.
- It’s tough to accurately say how much the Panthers currently have under the cap. According to ESPN, it’s $11.4 million. The NFLPA public report, which is usually at least a couple days behind, says $12.9 million.
- The DeAngelo Williams release will add around $2 million to the Panthers’ cap after June 1.
- Cam Newton didn’t sign a new deal, but his 2015 increase should be noted. His fifth-year option of $14.7 million costs the Panthers $7.7 million more than they paid him last season.
