Carolina Panthers Keeping Their Pass Rush Together

One thing the Carolina Panthers did well in 2016 is rush the passer. The team was smart to keep their pass rushing unit together for 2017.

The Carolina Panthers struggled in their follow-up year to being Super Bowl runner-ups. Neither the defense nor the offense were the same in the team’s fall in 2016. The offense had injuries on the line and the defense didn’t have the same coverage with Josh Norman gone.

But one thing that remained the same was the pass rush as the Panthers finished No. 2 in sacks. When you have a pass rush like the Panthers had in 2016, it’s wise to keep it together. And the Panthers are doing that as they re-signed defensive end Mario Addison.

He was due to hit the free agent market in March before the new contract was signed. At age 29, Addison is coming off a career high 9.5 sacks last season. He is a late bloomer with 21 of his 25.5 career sacks over the last three seasons with the Panthers.

According to NFL Network, the new deal is for three years and a total of $22.5 million. Addison went to the Panthers in 2012 after they signed him off the Washington Redskins’ practice squad. And he gradually became the disruptive force he is now.

So the Panthers are going into 2017 with a secondary that improved over the course of the 2016 season. Luke Kuechly and co. will get the job done when it comes to stopping the run. An with this signing, the pass rush will be back to put heat on opposing QBs.

All they have to do now is get that offense back on track.