Mailbag: What are Panthers’ pass rushing options? Burns extension coming before camp?

With the Carolina Panthers on summer vacation, The Observer has brought back its mailbag to answer reader’s questions ahead of training camp.

While quarterback Bryce Young and the offense have dominated the offseason discussion to this point, it appears that the Carolina faithful is more concerned with the defense entering the heart of the roster evaluation process.

Here are some standout questions from this week’s mailbag:

From Adam Bouanaka on Twitter: The Panthers seem to be mostly fine with their edge situation, but if they were to add a player at that position through free agency, do you think they’d be more of a depth player or a guy who would have more of a defined role like Yannick Ngakoue?

Mike Kaye: The pass rusher market has dried up at a slow-burn pace this offseason. While there are still big names out there, like Ngakoue and Jadeveon Clowney, the journeyman group isn’t pretty.

Leonard Floyd is an edge player who was heavily linked to the Panthers, and as The Observer reported in April, Carolina did have interest in him early in the free agency process. However, Floyd ended up signing with the Buffalo Bills on a one-year, $7 million deal earlier this month.

Ngakoue and Clowney are likely to seek better deals than what Floyd got from Buffalo — even if that outlook seems far-fetched at this point. And if the Panthers weren’t willing to pay Floyd at a cheaper price, despite his experience in a similar scheme in Los Angeles, why would they turn to Ngakoue and Clowney to pay more, especially after delaying a signing this late into the offseason?

The Panthers traded up to select Oregon pass rusher D.J. Johnson in the third round in April. That move implies that the team is going the cost-effective route at the position with Pro Bowl edge rusher Brian Burns likely to receive a massive contract extension in the near future.

Marquis Haynes put together a strong offseason program and dominated mandatory minicamp. While the Panthers need more than Burns and Haynes to get by, there seems to be some optimism with Yetur Gross-Matos coming out of the offseason program. With that said, it’s likely that the Panthers turn to a rotational player instead of a starter within the pass rusher market before training camp in July.

The market is light on rotational upgrades, even as the Panthers deal with the growing pains of a conversion to a 3-4 defense. There are available veterans like Trey Flowers, Kyle Van Noy and Carl Nassib, who have experience in an odd front, but none of them are sure-bets in full-time starter roles.

Ultimately, if the Panthers want to avoid paying big bucks for a pass rusher, their best bet is to bring in a veteran like Nassib or Van Noy, and hope their choice can upgrade the depth chart over the likes of Gross-Matos or Amare Barno.

Panthers on Tap asks: What’s the likelihood a Brian Burns extension comes together before training camp?

MK: Burns sounded pretty relaxed while discussing his long-term future in Carolina last week.

The two-time Pro Bowl pass rusher is only 25, and the Panthers’ brass has been pretty transparent about the desire to keep Burns in Charlotte for the foreseeable future. General manager Scott Fitterer turned down multiple first-round picks for Burns ahead of last year’s trade deadline, which is the ultimate sign that the pass rusher has a lot of leverage heading into the negotiation of his next contract.

The two sides have seemingly discussed a new deal, but Burns — who is set to make $16 million in the fifth and final year of his rookie contract — is coming off ankle surgery and has yet to practice under the new coaching staff. He is expected to be ready to participate in training camp in July, and his recovery might be part of the reason why both sides have slow-played this negotiation.

Both sides want to get a deal done. So, sure, the possibility of a contract extension before training camp is there. However, the team might want to get an updated look at Burns’ ankle before pen hits paper.

Burns is also kind of a hard player to place within his positional market. Is he worthy of a setting the new contract standard at his position, or will he be compared to the likes of Maxx Crosby and Bradley Chubb?

Burns is unquestionably valuable, both because of his sacks numbers and young age, but is he really in the T.J. Watt and Nick Bosa spectrum? Watt averages $28 million per season, while Bosa brings in $27 million per year.

Crosby, a standout for the Las Vegas Raiders, makes $23.5 million per year, and Chubb, who was acquired by the Miami Dolphins at last year’s trade deadline, recently signed a deal to make $22 million per year.

Burns is younger than all four players, and his market is likely somewhere in between the Watt-Bosa price and the Crosby-Chubb price. Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett, a former first overall pick, might be the best comparison in potential price at $25 million per year. Obviously, guaranteed money will be the ultimate factor involved.

Burns has leverage to make a big deal happen. Could the Panthers’ blink before training camp? Possibly.

From Jared Feinberg on Twitter: What are your overall thoughts on the safety group going into the season? Should we expect more three safety looks with Jeremy Chinn playing more of the STAR/nickel role and Vonn Bell/Xavier Woods on the back end?

MK: Let’s go with the second question first. Yes, I do expect Bell and Woods to handle the back end with Chinn taking on the big nickel role regularly.

Chinn adapted well to the role in the offseason program and earned rave reviews behind the scenes, as well as in press conferences from players and coaches. Chinn had a couple of standout plays during OTAs in front of the media that I don’t think he would have made last year. It’s fair to say he’s exceeded expectations, both internally and externally, entering training camp.

As far as the group is concerned — it’s deep. Most teams would be thrilled to have four NFL-caliber players at the position, and the Panthers have at least six who can play safety in the pros. Bell, Woods and Chinn can all start, while fifth-round pick Jammie Robinson, Eric Rowe and Sam Franklin have the versatility to line up at several positions within the Panthers’ defense.

That depth should be viewed as a phenomenal asset in nickel and dime packages, as the Panthers can play around with the secondary in several different looks.

From Greg on Twitter: Who are the Panthers planning to use at nickel?

MK: Right now, Chinn is the guy with the most defined nickel role. As mentioned above, he had an excellent set of practices during the offseason program.

Otherwise, the Panthers haven’t really tipped their hand — or paw? — on the overall image of the nickel position this offseason. Jaycee Horn and Donte Jackson were both injured during stretches of the offseason program, so the unit wasn’t at full strength. C.J. Henderson also missed some time.

Chinn will be used often at the nickel spot, but he won’t be the only player at the position. The Panthers will face matchups where they need to rely on dime packages, and with those looks, they’ll probably move Chinn to the linebacker spot. That adjustment should lead to opportunities for other members of the secondary.

While Robinson and Rowe seem like logical tag-team partners for Chinn in the nickel spot, the Panthers could choose to move Jackson or Horn to the slot in order to get Henderson onto the field more often this season. Typically, teams want their best three coverage guys on the field on third down, and moving Jackson or Horn to the nickel spot, would allow that to happen with Henderson taking on one of the boundary roles.

Another player to watch at nickel corner is special teams ace Stantley Thomas-Oliver. Last week, Jackson heavily praised Thomas-Oliver’s versatility in the secondary. My understanding is that praise was not just smoke being blown in the way of an under-the-radar teammate. Thomas-Oliver had a strong offseason program, which means he has momentum heading into training camp.