Panthers Have New Parts, but on Right Track
Wednesday, May 10, 2006; 12:24 PM
Offseason Roundup: Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers Coach John Fox was stepping out of an elevator at the Orlando, Fla., resort where the annual league meetings were being held in March when a well-wisher congratulated him on a 2005 season in which Fox's team reached the NFC title game before suffering a frustratingly one-sided defeat at Seattle. "Thanks," Fox said. "It was okay. I didn't like how it ended."
As the offseason began, the Panthers had a few tasks to accomplish to remain at least at last season's level and give themselves a chance to finish their season in more satisfying fashion next time around. They had to patch together their running game, with Stephen Davis's career perhaps ending because of knee troubles and fellow tailback DeShaun Foster eligible for unrestricted free agency. They had to obtain a wide receiver to complement Steve Smith. And they had to re-sign or replace productive linebacker Will Witherspoon, another prospective free agent.
Fox and General Manager Marty Hurney seem to have done pretty well. They managed to put together a tailback tandem that might be even more potent than Davis and Foster were, with Foster now set to be paired with rookie DeAngelo Williams. The Panthers first used their transition-player tag to limit Foster's free-agent mobility and buy themselves some time, then re-signed him to a three-year, $14.5 million contract that included a $4.5 million signing bonus. With Davis perhaps headed to retirement, the Panthers released him. His replacement came on draft day when Williams fell to Carolina for the draft's 27th overall selection. He is short but solidly built, at 5 feet 9 and 217 pounds, and he gives the Panthers a potentially forceful runner to split carries with the darting Foster.
The club absolutely had to have another effective wideout to keep defenses from focusing solely on Smith, who was one of the league's most valuable players last season but had precious little help. Carolina's answer was to sign Keyshawn Johnson as a free agent after he was released by the Dallas Cowboys, swooping in after he'd seemed headed to the New York Giants and signing him to a four-year, $19 million deal that included a $5 million signing bonus.
The Panthers usually are not the sort of organization to give good money to a headstrong player whose best days, with his 34th birthday quickly approaching, are behind him. But they were desperate for receiving help, and Johnson perhaps could be the sort of player opposite Smith that Muhsin Muhammad once was. He still was a useful player in his two seasons in Dallas, totaling 141 catches.
Witherspoon left to sign a six-year, $33 million contract -- including $15 million in guaranteed money -- with the St. Louis Rams in free agency. The Panthers released their other starting outside linebacker, Brandon Short, in a salary cap move. They failed to make a big-splash move to find replacements. But they signed two veteran free agents, Keith Adams and Na'il Diggs. They used a third-round draft pick last month on Virginia Tech linebacker James Anderson. And Thomas Davis, a first-round draft choice last year, appears set to settle in at outside linebacker after the Panthers seemed uncertain during his rookie season whether to put him at linebacker or safety.
The Panthers upgraded their offensive line in free agency by signing center Justin Hartwig, formerly of the Tennessee Titans. They signed defensive tackles Maake Kemoeatu and Damione Lewis, one of which likely will replace the departed Brentson Buckner -- who was released -- and start alongside Kris Jenkins. The Panthers declined to match a Chicago Bears' offer sheet to cornerback Ricky Manning Jr., a restricted free agent, just after he was arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of assault. But they'd already signed free agent cornerback Reggie Howard, and soon thereafter they selected promising Fresno State cornerback Richard Marshall in the second round of the draft.
There are some new parts to be fit into place. But Fox is one of the league's best coaches, and he has been given a team that appears to be at least as talented as last season's version. The Panthers seem to have inched ahead of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the club to beat in the NFC South, and they could vie with the Seahawks and the NFC East's three prospective heavyweights -- the Cowboys, Giants and Washington Redskins -- for conference supremacy.
Around the League
An NFL source said this morning that Charley Casserly likely will resign today as general manager of the Houston Texans during a meeting with the team's owner, Robert McNair.
The Houston Chronicle reported today that Casserly was expected to resign. There has been speculation around the league for weeks that he would leave the Texans after the draft to work in the league office.
Casserly, the former general manager of the Redskins, was hired by McNair in 2000 to run the expansion franchise and he assembled the team that played its first game in the fall of 2002. The club went 4-12 in its opening season, then improved to five wins in 2003 and seven in 2004. But with expectations growing, the Texans slumped to a league-worst two victories last season, leading to the firing of coach Dom Capers.
