If you’re up for an interesting debate, let’s discuss trading away Daryl Worley
The Carolina Panthers stumbled to a 7-9 record in 2018, just one year removed from a solid 2017 campaign in which they went 11-5 and made the postseason. One way to reflect on the year-over-year decline is to evaluate which players from the 2017 squad the Panthers actively chose to not bring back this year (i.e. traded or didn’t re-sign).
With that in mind here is the recap of the 2017 defense and special teams players who played elsewhere in 2018 and how much (or little) the team missed them this year.
DT Star Lotulelei
Departed via: Free agency. Signed 5-year, $50 million deal with the Buffalo Bills
Star’s 2017 campaign was arguably his worst in Carolina with just 25 tackles, three tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and five quarterback hits (though his full value as a blocker-eater isn’t reflected in stats alone.) In 2018 Star signed with the Bills and had another disappointing year with a career-low 17 tackles, one tackle for loss, zero sacks, and zero quarterback hits. If Pro Football Focus grades mean anything to you, his 55.9 grade was No. 103 at his position.
Final evaluation: Glad the Panthers aren’t on the hook for his 2019 cap hit of $11.5 million.
S Kurt Coleman
Departed via: Cut by Panthers. Signed 3-year, $16.3 million deal with the New Orleans Saints
He signed with the Saints in 2018 and settled in as a role player instead of an impact player. He appeared in all 16 games with nine starts but played in just 34.9 percent of New Orleans’ defensive snaps and his role decreased as the season progressed.
Final evaluation: Perfectly fine veteran but won’t live up to his 2019 cap hit of $7.0 million.
CB Daryl Worley
Departed via: Traded to Eagles for Torrey Smith
After being traded in March 2018, Worley was arrested under troubling circumstances in April and was immediately released by the Eagles. The Oakland Raiders then signed him and he began the season with a four-game suspension stemming from the arrest. But once Worley got back on the field, he was serviceable. He appeared in 11 games with nine starts. He had 33 tackles (three for losses), seven passes defended, and one interception. His PFF grade of 55.6 was No. 109 among cornerbacks.
Final evaluation: Off-field issues aside, Daryl Worley would’ve been far more valuable than Torrey Smith this year and next year.
K Harrison Butker
Departed via: Signed off Panthers practice squad by the Kansas City Chiefs in September 2017
The Panthers selected Butker in the seventh round of the 2017 draft on a delicious four-year, $2.4 million deal then took a calculated risk by putting him on the practice squad while continuing to roll with Graham Gano. The Chiefs plucked Butker off the practice squad and the Panthers re-upped with Gano for four years, $17 million.
Final evaluation: Let’s see, Butker and Gano produce at similar levels but one gets paid seven times more than the other...
PR/WR Kaelin Clay
Departed via: Free agency. Signed a 1-year, $720,000 deal with the Buffalo Bills
The speedy special teamer spent only a partial season in Carolina in 2017 and returned 17 punts and three kickoffs over nine games including a spectacular 60-yard punt return touchdown in a Week 12 win against the New York Jets. His 2018 season was disappointing though as he was waived by the Bills, signed by the Giants, then went on injured reserve after returning five punts for 15 yards.
Final evaluation: Plenty of other options with Damiere Byrd, D.J. Moore, and Kenjon Barner
Overall, moving on from Star Lotulelei and Kurt Coleman was for the best, especially when you starting looking a year or two down the road. Losing Harrison Butker will likely be a sore topic among the Panthers faithful for years to come.
Trading Daryl Worley remains a great “what if” debate. Could remaining a Panther have helped him avoid the circumstances leading to his post-trade arrest? Would he have taken another step forward in 2018 (he’s only 23 and just finished his third NFL season) as he continued in the same system and learned in every huddle from Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis? How valuable would he have been in 2019 as a fourth-year player still on a rookie-scale contract? With as thin as the Panthers are at cornerback, I wish I could undo the Torrey Smith trade and see exactly what Daryl Worley could’ve become over four full years in Carolina. I’m not saying he’d be a Pro Bowler, but any team relying on Captain Munnerlyn and Corn Elder could use all of the help it can get.
Overall, Marty Hurney was right to let Lotulelei and Coleman move on, but losing Harrison Butker is a costly mistake. With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, Carolina would’ve been better off trying to develop Daryl Worley than watching Torrey Smith tumble down the depth chart.
As we start to look ahead to 2019, Marty Hurney will have several big decisions about re-signing current players or letting them walk. Let’s hope he makes the right calls.
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