Carolina Panthers: Dre Kirkpatrick could be a fit in the secondary
By Luke Tucker
After the Carolina Panthers lost James Bradberry in free agency, Dre Kirkpatrick could be a possible target to bolster the secondary.
Entering the 2020 season, perhaps no NFL team will have as many new faces on defense as the Carolina Panthers. Since January, the Panthers have lost Luke Kuechly to retirement, released Dontari Poe and Eric Reid, and let James Bradberry, Mario Addison, Gerald McCoy and Bruce Irvin walk in free agency. All seven of whom were starters on defense in 2019. As a result, the Panthers face a host of questions on the defensive side of the ball prior to the upcoming season.
Since losing the aforementioned players, the only real “impact” signings the team has made on the defense are linebacker Tahir Whitehead and safety Juston Burris. Defensive end Stephen Weatherly could also figure to be a nice pickup. Perhaps the biggest remaining hole on the Carolina defense is at cornerback. Donte Jackson certainly remains in the team’s plans at the position (at least for now); however, he hasn’t proven to be a number-one corner in the NFL, and as of right now, the Panthers are without another starting-caliber defender on the outside. That being said, former first-round pick Dre Kirkpatrick could be a solution at the position.
Kirkpatrick, who has played eight seasons in the league, was released by the Bengals this week in large part due to a hefty salary.
After spending the first eight seasons of his professional career in Cincinnati, the Bengals cut ties with the veteran corner last week. Kirkpatrick became one of the highest-paid cornerbacks in the league in 2017, but after an injury-plagued 2019 campaign, the team decided to move on this offseason. He had been a regular starter in Cincinnati for the past five years, and to this point in his career has recorded 10 interceptions–including two returned for touchdowns–and 65 passes defensed. Kirkpatrick wouldn’t be a long-term fit in Carolina, but considering the shape the team’s cornerback situation is currently in, they would be wise to at least look into potentially signing the Alabama product.
Despite getting released, Kirkpatrick still brings valuable talent and veteran leadership to the table.
As the Panthers chose to do with Reid and Poe, the Bengals decided not to keep Kirkpatrick on the roster largely due to the almost $10 million he was set to earn in the upcoming season. While it’s true that he has been plagued with inconsistent play and injuries at different points in his career, Kirkpatrick is still worthy of a starting job in the NFL. It’s also worth noting that he could potentially play a positive role in Donte Jackson’s development. Through his first two NFL seasons, the 24-year-old Jackson has shown immense potential, although he too has unfortunately shown a propensity for inconsistent play, especially when covering downfield. Carolina could and likely will choose to select another young corner in this year’s draft, and the presence of a veteran player like Kirkpatrick could be valuable to that youngster as well.
Ultimately, it makes sense for the Panthers to sign Kirkpatrick, but it’s hard to imagine him being a long-term fit in Carolina even if he were to play well. He’d be a stop-gap in the secondary, but with Jackson still raw and no other real options on the current roster, it’ll likely be a veteran signing that lines up against the opponent’s number-one receiver come September. He would come fairly cheap and could prove to be an effective signing, even if it’s not for long. Regardless of who the Panthers choose to sign–and at this point their options are a bit limited–it would be unwise of them to not sign an established player to anchor the top cornerback spot.