In the first of multiple moves this offseason aimed to reduce the Carolina Panthers salary cap figure, safety Kurt Coleman and defensive end Charles Johnson have been released this afternoon.
Coleman, who was named team captain for the first time in his career this past season, had no interceptions in 2017 after having 11 combined in his first two seasons with the club; Johnson had zero sacks for the first time since his 2007 rookie season. Coleman missed four games due to injury last season and accounted for his lowest tackle total (77) of his three years in Carolina; the 29-year old spent the first four years of his career with the Eagles and a season in Kansas City before coming to Carolina in 2015 and starting all fifteen games in the Panthers’ Super Bowl run of that year.
He had 103 tackles and led the team with seven interceptions that season, including one returned for a touchdown; Coleman would sign a contract extension after 2015, but will be released with two years remaining on that deal; Coleman’s salary cap hit would have been $5.15m in 2018, but with this move, the Panthers will get $2.6m in cap relief while paying the 29-year-old safety $2.5m in dead money towards the cap.
Charles Johnson, who has played every season of his career with the team, endured offseason back surgery and revealed during training camp that at one point could not get out of bed before having the microdiscectomy; Johnson would start the first 11 games of season, but was suspended for four of the team’s final five games for violating the league’s substance abuse policy and was inactive via coaches decision for the team’s playoff game in New Orleans.
Johnson has the second-most sacks in Panthers’ franchise history with 67.5, sitting only behind Julius Peppers on that list; Peppers future is also in doubt after the 37-year old future Hall of Famer has not announced whether or not he will be returning for another season after recent offseason shoulder surgery. The release of Johnson will clear just over $3.1m in cap space for 2018.
Not surprisingly, but evidenced even more clearly by this move, the Panthers will clearly need to address both defensive end and safety during either the draft or free agency, Currently, the Panthers have only Mike Adams, Colin Jones, Dezmen Southward and Damian Parms under contract at safety. At defensive end, Mario Addison, Wes Horton, Daeshon Hall, Bryan Cox, Jr., Efe Obada and Zach Moore make up the current group; expect at least one player from the 2018 draft to be added.
Offensive tackle John Theus was also waived after not appearing in any games during the 2017 season. The three roster moves combined to clear over $6m in 2018 cap space.
