Peppers Expected to Sign with New England

Sure, it’s St. Patrick’s Day, but don’t expect Julius Peppers to be wearing Jets green anytime soon. Instead, look for him in Patriots red and blue, as the Carolina Panthers’ standout defensive end has been rumored to be leaving Charlotte for the ranks of Bill Belichick and Co. The Carolina Panthers have denied reports of trade talk with the New England Patriots (nevermind that they have to, as the team can’t start talking with other teams until Peppers signs his one-year deal or his agent signs a deal with another team and comes to Carolina for approval,) but New England appears to be the perfect landing spot for this bird known as Julius Peppers who is ready to spread his wings elsewhere.

The New England Patriots have seemingly already cleared room for Peppers in their lineup, as the team recently unloaded big dogs Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel onto the Kansas City Chiefs, clearing up salary cap room and also a spot for a new linebacker. If Peppers was to get the trade to the Patriots, he would undoubtedly serve as the Pats’ new outside linebacker and play in a 3-4 defense, which the Pro Bowler has already claimed he wants to play in. Will this deal go through? Stay tuned to find out!

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Back to Tennessee for Jones?

Carolina Panthers punt and kickoff returner Mark Jones became a free agent after his lone year with the team in Charlotte, and it looks like it’s going to be one and done for this former Tampa Bay player. Jones stepped in for the Panthers last season after Ryne Robinson injured his right knee at the beginning of the season, averaging 11.4 yards over 39 punts and a 24.0-yard average on his 40 kickoff returns. While he has been a tremendous asset to the Panthers in his short time there, this is one returner who might not be wearing a Panthers jersey for this upcoming NFL season.

Following a lead from The Tennessean, Mark Jones has recently been spotted getting comfy with the Titans, having spent some time last week with the team. The Titans are exploring return options due to their returner Chris Carr signing a deal with the Baltimore Ravens over the weekend, and Jones could be the man for the job. Should Jones sign a deal with the Titans, he will go back to playing on Tennessee soil, which is where he played in college at the University of Tennessee. Jones was drafted into the NFL in 2004 by the New York Giants, and he spent 2005-2007 with the Tampa Bay Bucs before joining the Panthers in 2008.

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What Is On Tap In Carolina

The Panthers have restructured the contract of punter Jason Backer. Frank Murtha, Baker’s agent, reported that the punter was scheduled to make “$1.1 million this season.” The Panthers are now shelling out $850,000 to Baker for the 2009 season. Murtha continued by saying “the rest of his deal, which runs through 2012, now includes $1.37 in ‘01, $1.4 million in 2011,  and $1.55 in 20012. The Panthers felt it was the right thing to do, so they move a little money around.” Is it just me, or aren’t they paying kickers a little to much?  The restructuring allows the Panthers to save money and they still haven’t made the decision to re-sign free agents such as long snapper Jason Kyle and punt and kickoff return man Mark Jones. Jones visited the Tennessee Titans on Thursday (according to The Nashville Tennessean). Jones returned 39 punts for an average of 11.4 yards. He also took back 40 kickoffs for a 24.0-yard average. He stepped in nicely, Stabilizing the Panther’s punt and kickoff return last season while Ryne Robinson was out with a knee injury. Robinson and Jason Carter are expected to be back with the Panthers. Its also been reported that receiver Kenneth Moore might return punts and kicks.

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Lucas Released

A couple of days ago, our blog  mentioned cornerback Ken Lucas was going to be traded. He was released. The Carolina Panthers finally made the move yesterday. The eight-year veteran, spent four seasons with Carolina after starting his career in Seattle. Lucas has been a dynamic player. The 30-year-old has 24 career interceptions, including a career-high six on two occasions. The cornerback was a second round-pick  in 2001, Lucas sighned a six-year deal worth $36 million when he joined Carolina in 2005.

Carolina general manager Marty Hurney had only positive words to describe his cornerback. “Ken Lucas has been a very valuable player for us over the last four years and played an important role on two playoff teams during that span.” The general manager continued by adding, “Ken is a true pro and we wish him the very best. This year, we have re-signed some veteran players, and this move means some younger players will have an opportunity to step up.”  The move clears about $2.3 million in salary-cap space. The Panthers had been trying to work out a trade for the veteran, but Lucas vetoed a deal to the Detroit Lions last month and the Panthers on Wednesday cut him loose after he struggled late last season. He started 49 of 50 games with 13 interceptions. But Lucas was burned on several occasions, and the Panthers appear poised to promote No. 3 cornerback Richard Marshall to the starting job opposite Chris Gamble.

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Lane’s Widow Released From Prision

Fred Lane was a running back for the Panthers from 1997-2000. The 5-foot-10, 205 pound lane is the Panthers’ fifth-leading all-time rusher, finishing with 2,001 yards before his April 2000 trade. His Widow, Deidra Lane, 33, was released from Raleigh Correctional Center for women. She served nearly six years for killing Fred Lane. A judge sentenced Deidra, Lane to seven years and 11 months. He concluded that her actions were premeditated and deliberate, and acted with malice by shooting her husband a second time after he was lying on the floor.  Authorities claimed that Deidra Lane waited for her husband to return from his families home on July 6th. She opened fire as soon as Fred opened the door. She then approached his body and shot him a second time in the back of the head. The police found Mr. Lane  dead inside the front door of the couples Charlotte home. His keys were still inside the door.

After leaving prison at 9:25 a.m., Deidra got into a BMW, where her relatives waited to take her home. She did not answer reporters’ questions as she quickly darted into the car. Fred Lane Sr., Fred Lane’s father has not commented on the releases of his former daughter-in-law. Although this story has nothing to do with Panthers football at the present time, we should remember the talented Lane for not only his athletic gifts on the field, but for being apart of the Panther family.

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Nothing New At Carolina Headquarters

Since there is nothing new brewing today in Panther town, I will focus on whats ahead for the Carolina Panthers. The news has been that the Panthers will be making major changes regarding their defense that will dictate the style of players they go after in free agency and also in the draft. With the hiring of Ron Meek as defensive coordinator, the Panthers will lean towards a “Tampa 2″ style that Meeks is familiar with. March has arrived, which means Panther officials will be traveling to see who will fit in perfectly in Meeks’ system. Among the colleges with workouts the Panthers are geared up to visit early this month: Baylor, Texas A and M, Wisconsin, Missouri, Troy, and Vanderbilt.

Keying in on players Carolina may pick will be difficult to tell for fans since the Panthers don’t pick until late in the second round. Keep in mind they traded their ‘09 first-round pick, which caused an up roar with Panthers’ fans. The point of the trade was to was to give Philadelphia as part of a package to select right tackle Jeff Otah with the number 19 pick last year. It was considered a risky move, even laughable to some, but now is being regarded as the right decision for the Panthers.

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Panthers Making Some Changes

The Panthers made a couple of big moves. They hired Brian Baker as defensive line coach recently. He will replace Sal Sunseri, who left last month to become an assistant at Alabama. Baker has plenty of experience, his resume includes working with St. Louis  the past three years. He also worked for Minnesota, Detroit, and San Diego by coaching the defensive line and linebackers.

Panthers have also hired Ron Meeks as defensive co-ordinator, Richard Smith, the linebacker coach and Ron Milus to coach the secondary. The Panthers will try and regroup and rebuild a team that allowed 30 or more points in 6 of its final seven games, which included that horrendous and surprising loss to Arizona in the playoffs (33-13).

As for changes made in the lineup. Carolina agreed to trade cornerback Ken Lucas to the Detroit Lions. This move relieves the Panthers in salary cap by $2.37 million. They desperately needed to move Lucaus since sources are reporting the Carolina Panthers “are going to be dead in free agency. They simply don’t have any money to spend.” The Panthers were very busy this past weekend, as they found themselves scrambling to get under the NFL-mandated $127 million salary cap by half the night.

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Jay Cutler On The Block?

Yesterday’s blog focused on Freeman being a possible QB draft pick.  Some Commentators, writers, and fans have also thrown Jay Cutler into the mix. Could the Panthers be working on a trade for Cutler? There is one major problem with this scenario. What can the Panthers offer the Broncos in exchange for Cutler? Carolina doesn’t have a first round draft pick to offer up as part of a deal for Cutler. The Panthers could offer Peppers to the Broncos, but Peppers hasn’t signed the franchise contract, which makes any trade negotiations impossible. Another problem with the Peppers deal is would Denver want Peppers and where would he fit in their system. The $60,000 question is can the Broncos even afford Peppers?

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We also have to take in consideration that the Broncos have signed quarterback Phil Simms to a two-year deal two days ago. Is coach McCoy sending Cutler a message or is Simms just a backup quarterback?  Don’t hold your breath on the Cutler/Peppers deal, there is too much to sort out at this point. But Cutler is a fiery competitor. He is talented, mobile, and has a strong arm. If the Broncos discussed trading Cutler last week, then they are probably still discussing him this week, just not publicly. Panthers fans will just have to see how this turns out.

Panthers Need Another QB?

The word on the street lately is that the Carolina Panthers might acquire another quarterback. Is this really necessary? After all, they have Jack Delhomme, Josh McCown, and Matt Moore. Delhomme has been a reliable QB for years, but after a rough season and a difficult post season against the Arizona Cardinals, the Carolina Panthers are examining their options. If the Panthers decide to grab a quarterback it will most likely be Josh Freeman. Freeman has a very strong arm and looks like a quarterback, standing at 6-6 and 250 pounds is a formidable opponent. The scouts will definitely look over Freeman, who is entering the draft after his junior year. He was a three year starter at Kansas State and owns his fair share of school records. Freeman should fit into that traditional second round group of quarterbacks that are high on potential. But things are a little different this year since the quarterback class is so tight. That means somebody might take a chance on Freeman late in the first round if Matthew Stafford and Mark Sanchez are off the Board. So the question is how much confidence do the Panthers have in Delhomme? If they don’t, maybe its time for some fresh blood.

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Diggs Signs Contract Extension

Na’il Diggs will officially stick around Charlotte for the next five years, as the outside linebacker just struck a deal with the Carolina Panthers extending his contract through the 2014 NFL season. Diggs’ contract was set to expire in 2010, but the Panthers recently restructured his contract and signed him to an extension, dropping his base salary to provide salary cap relief. While Diggs’ 2009 base salary dropped from $1.65 million to $925,000, the linebacker will likely get some guaranteed money to be stretched over the course of his extended contract, helping get around the team’s salary cap issues.

As Diggs’ contract was recently adjusted, his new deal also helped ease the Panthers’ hurt from contract escalators for running back Jonathan Stewart, linebacker Thomas Davis and defensive end Tyler Brayton, whose contract accelerators moved a hefty $2.8 million in combined cap growth in the last year. Stewart’s 836 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2008 gained him an additional $1 million to his base salary, while Davis’ 136 tackles helped propel a $700,000 rise in salary and Brayton’s career-high 4 ½ sacks and 59 tackles also aided in his $300,000 rise in pay.

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