Former Detroit Lions defensive tackle John Penisini is rebooting his NFL career with the Carolina Panthers. Penisini’s agent, David Canter, announced that the 25-year-old DT is signing with Carolina.
Penisini was recently waived from the Lions’ reserve/retired list. He had opted to retire last summer after suffering from large growths on his shoulders that Detroit head coach Dan Campbell described as “softballs”.
After clearing waivers from the Lions, Penisini became a free agent able to sign with any team. Detroit’s 6th-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft opted to take his run-stuffing talents to Carolina. He had performed well as a rookie nose tackle, logging 35 tackles and one sack for Matt Patricia’s final Lions squad.
