On Tuesday, NFL.com senior researcher Anthony Holzman-Escareno showed the football world his baby—the best team the league’s salary cap can buy. And wouldn’t you know it—two Carolina Panthers made the squad!
We’ll start on defense, where safety Jeremy Chinn squeezed in alongside Kevin Byard, Tyrann Mathieu and Jordan Fuller on the backend.
“Drafted as a safety, listed as a linebacker as a rookie and a safety as a sophomore, versatility is Jeremy Chinn’s game,” Holzman-Escareno writes. “He’s lined up for at least 200 snaps at each level of the defense over the last two seasons, per Next Gen Stats: line of scrimmage (232), linebacker (672), cornerback (459) and safety (532). Chinn has flashed some struggles in coverage, but his all-around skill set was too enticing to pass on. This dude also scored two defensive touchdowns on consecutive scrimmage plays as a rookie.”
Speaking of Chinn’s rookie campaign, the talented 24-year-old is still on his first NFL contract. His cap number for 2022 will amount to just $1.4 million—which, obviously, makes him quite a grab for this particular exercise.
The second Panther, and a much more surprising one, plays on the opposite side of the ball. What’s even more of a surprise is that (and we’ll need a drumroll for this . . . ) he’s a quarterback!
“Former Temple star PJ Walker is 2-0 as a starter in his career, brings an extra dimension with his legs and carries a cap hit a sliver under $900,000,” Holzman-Escareno notes. “There’s risk in not investing in another veteran option at quarterback behind [Tom] Brady. However, we know Brady isn’t coming off that field. I am also confident in this: If Matt Cassel could navigate the 2008 Patriots to an 11-5 record, [Davis] Mills or Walker can take this roster to the promised land.”
Walker sticks on as the No. 3 option on this roster, behind that Tom Brady dude and Houston Texans second-year passer Davis Mills. He’ll also likely be assuming the same role in Carolina this upcoming season, with Sam Darnold and Matt Corral battling for the reins in 2022.
