Given his production over the past two years, it wouldn’t be a surprise for Haason Reddick to receive a big payday this offseason. More specifics on his potential new deal came out recently, courtesy of CBS’ Jonathan Jones.
The 27-year-old is thought to be aiming for a contract “averaging up to $17M per year,” Jones writes. That would represent a massive increase from the $8M he played for last seasons in Carolina. It would also not catch general manager Scott Fitterer off-guard, as he let it be know last week the team “anticipates” Reddick testing the market.
After three relatively underwhelming seasons with the Cardinals, the former first-rounder broke out in 2020 with a 12.5-sack campaign. That led to his reunion with Matt Rhule, his college coach at Temple, last offseason with the aforementioned "prove it" deal. Reddick did just that, putting up another 11 sacks, 12 tackles for loss and a pair of forced fumbles.
Jones adds that the high price Reddick is said to be seeking “explains why the Panthers aren’t rushing to re-sign him.” The restructure of fellow linebacker Shaq Thompson‘s deal is the latest in a series of moves the team has made to free up cap space. With plenty of financial flexibility, a deal that keeps Reddick in Charlotte can’t be ruled out, though the Panthers have a number of other offseason priorities. Wherever he ends up, Reddick figures to be one of the top defensive free agents when the new league year begins.
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