Haason Reddick has parlayed his breakout 2020 season into a one-year contract with the Carolina Panthers. The veteran linebacker has come to terms with Carolina on a one-year, $8 million contract that includes $6 million guaranteed, according to NFL Network's Mike Garofolo. The move reunites Reddick with Panthers coach Matt Rhule, who was Reddick's coach during their time together at Temple.
The 13th overall pick in the 2017 draft, Reddick tallied just 7.5 sacks during his first three seasons with the Cardinals. Reddick's breakout season came in 2020, when he totaled 12.5 sacks along with six forced fumbles and 15 tackles for loss. Reddick's impressive 2020 season made him one of the top remaining available free agents entering the first official day of free agency.
Reddick joins a Panthers defense that desperately needed to bolster their pass rush after recording just 29 team sacks in 2020. Defensive ends Brian Burns (nine sacks) and Efe Obada (5.5 sacks) were the only Panthers who registered more than five sacks last season.
Carolina made history in 2020 by using all seven of its draft picks on defense. And while their inexperience held them back in 2020, the Panthers are hoping that defensive linemen Derrick Brown, Yetur Gross-Matos, safety Jeremy Chinn, and cornerback Troy Pride Jr. can develop into quality starters for years to come.
Linebacker, EDGE rusher and tight end were three of the Panthers' biggest positional needs this offseason. Quarterback is also a question mark, as three of of our four CBS Sports NFL draft experts currently have the Panthers taking a quarterback with the No. 8 overall pick. Teddy Bridgewater, who signed a three-year deal with Carolina before the start of the 2020 season, completed over 69% of his passes for 3,733 yards with 15 touchdowns and 11 interceptions during his first season as the Panthers' quarterback.
