Haason Reddick's breakout, contract year has landed him in a new home.
The Carolina Panthers are signing Reddick to a one-year deal worth up to $8 million, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport and NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported. Reddick's contract includes $6 million guaranteed, Garafolo added.
Taken 13th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft, Reddick was largely seen as a bust, or at the very least a disappointment prior to 2020 -- a season in which he flipped his own narrative on its head with one five-sack performance. That game against the Giants turned the football world's attention back to Reddick, formerly an afterthought, and punctuated a season in which Reddick posted career-high marks in sacks (12.5), tackles for loss (15), QB hits (16), and forced fumbles (six).
Now, he's headed to Carolina to join a Panthers team that boasts its own promising pass rusher in Brian Burns. It's a reunion for Reddick, who is signing to play under his former coach at Temple, Matt Rhule, who now leads the Panthers. It's also the second defensive signing made by the Panthers on Wednesday, as Carolina added linebacker Denzel Perryman on a two-year deal, Perryman's representation announced via Twitter.
Reddick isn't the only pass-rush addition for the Panthers, who are signing former Rams defensive lineman Morgan Fox to a two-year, $8.1 million deal, with $7 million guaranteed, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported.
A pairing of Burns and Reddick, No. 29 at the time of the agreement in Gregg Rosenthal's Top 101 free agents of 2021, could produce quite an edge-rushing duo, which we all know is of significant importance in today's NFL. As the Panthers aim to turn the corner back toward relevance, they'll attempt to do so with Reddick, who arrives on a prove-it deal with plenty of room to make quite an impression.
