Helter Skelter » In the modern NFL you can only retain a finite amount o

f your young talent Youth David Mayo Jersey , and the Carolina Panthers are basically at capacity."WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Keep Sounding PodcastPanthers 2019 NFL DraftCSR Film RoomCarolina Panthers free agency 2019Daryl Williams highlights the dilemma teams face with the salary capNew,41commentsIn the modern NFL you can only retain a finite amount of your young talent, and the Carolina Panthers are basically at capacity.ESTShareTweetShareShareDaryl Williams highlights the dilemma teams face with the salary capBob Donnan-USA TODAY SportsStop me if you’ve heard this tale before. Young and talented NFL prospect waits patiently behind a not as talented veteran until finally being granted his shot at NFL greatness. He seizes it and puts in a nice season of work, just in time for him to enter a contract year and cash in at just the right time. Before he can even get limbered up for the season ahead, he goes down with a knee injury. Then, probably before he was healed but aiming to keep his stock high, tries to suit up for week one and ends up making it a season ending injury.This was the story of an unfortunate year for fourth year tackle Daryl Williams, and one that you don’t like to see play out for anyone. Football is a cruel mistress, and these types of stories represent the peak of her painful nature.But beyond the ramifications for Williams’ future contract amount, it leaves the Carolina Panthers in the worst possible situation. One in which they may ultimately have to let their own homegrown talent simply walk away. Make no mistake, the team would ideally want to keep him on the team next year, but there are so many factors working against that. Such as:Cap space, both in the sense of the Carolina Panthers lacking it Stitched David Mayo Jersey , and other tackle needy teams having it.Another player that is exceling at his position (but could potentially be moved).The impossible process of placing value on a player who gave you one good year then sustained a very serious injury (a la Jeff Otah).A general manager whose job is far from assured in 2020 (a la Jeff Otah)The very nature of the NFL, where you can only have so many guys working under their second (and typically largest) contracts due to salary constraints.The last point is probably the most vital and frustrating part of it all. To be successful in the modern NFL, you can really only have a handful of players that you drafted and re-signed toa second contract thanks to their good play. The rest of the team has to be made up of a series of guys making at or just above the veteran minimum, and young guys on their rookie deals that cost very little. MickSmiley is going to explain this perfectly in an article due to drop tomorrow regarding Ian Thomas... But here is a high level breakdown:Carolina Panthers 2019 Salaries by player contract termPlayers that the Carolina Panthers drafted and have signed to their second contracts make up $76,663,727 of the team’s salary cap next season. This includes Cam Newton, Luke Kuechly, Kawann Short, Trai Turner, and Mario Addison (included because even though we didn’t actually draft him, we basically raised him up and gave him his first big deal). That group makes up a whopping 44% of the entire projected salary cap space usage for next year. Compare that number to this one... $25,987,042That number represents the combined salaries of Shaq Thompson Youth Greg Van Roten Jersey , Christian McCaffrey, Vernon Butler, D.J. Moore, James Bradberry, Curtis Samuel, Taylor Moton, Donte Jackson, Rashaan Gaulden, and Ian Thomas. That makes up just 15% of the projected salary cap usage for next year. Even more insane, is that includes a lofty $9.23 million dollar charge for Shaq Thompson’s 5th year option. Every single one of those players is projected to play significant snaps next season, if not an entire starting workload. The value there compared to guys on their second contract is absolutely insane, and exactly why the NFL Draft is so vital to winning year to year.Now, obviously the Panthers have one absolutely terrible deal on the books that they can do absolutely nothing about in Matt Kalil. That destroys their ability to sign someone like Williams looking forward to 2020 when they might have to pay to retain Shaq Thompson and/or James Bradberry. I don’t think the team can afford all three. Of the three Stitched Greg Van Roten Jersey , Williams would be the worst bet as it stands right now. The injury he had coupled with a hyper-inflated market for tackles is probably going to price this team out of the running. The good news for him as that since he plays such a valuable position, he is almost certain to get a large contract despite his injury. The bad news for us is that it probably won’t be in Charlotte. Having a stronger backup plan for Cam Newton is good, but the Panthers could’ve done better at the end of the third round" Panthers 2019 NFL DraftWhy the Carolina Panthers shouldn’t have taken a backup quarterback with pick No. 100New,471commentsHaving a stronger backup plan for Cam Newton is good, but the Panthers could’ve done better at the end of the third roundEDTLet me just say this up front, I hope Will Grier is awesome. He’s a Panther now so he’s part of my football family and I’m rooting for him. I hope he has a long and successful NFL career. That said, I believe the Panthers made a potentially costly mistake by investing the No. 100 pick in a backup quarterback. Again, this isn’t a shot at Will Grier. I would’ve made the same comment whether Carolina selected Grier or any other quarterback still left on the board. This is about the position, not the person. Here’s why:Roster gapsWhile Marty Hurney deserves a lot of credit for making smart moves in free agency and pulling off a seemingly strong draft, the Panthers roster still has holes at several positions. A capable rookie at a number of positions could have seen meaningful snaps in 2019 and beyond. The only way Grier will play is if Cam Newton is too injured to take the field. Let’s take a look at a sample of who the Panthers could have selected at No. 100 with draft grades and information from CBS Sports, Walter Football (WF), and NFL.com: Players available at No. 100NamePosDraft No. CBSWFNFL GradeNFL.com ProjectionNamePosDraft No. CBSWFNFL GradeNFL.com ProjectionWhile having a backup plan for Cam Newton is a good thing, no doubt Youth Eric Reid Jersey , finding a potential starter at a position of need would have been more valuable. Maximizing the value of rookie contractsCap hits for players drafted around No. 100 are like manna sent from the football heavens. In 2018 the Panthers drafted tight end Ian Thomas at No. 101 and signed him to a four-year, $3.2 million contract. Thomas exceeded expectations as a rookie and looks like a promising player. His cap hit in 2021, his fourth NFL season, will be a paltry $937,000. It’s not uncommon for players drafted around pick No. 100 to be situational contributors in their first couple of seasons then develop into quality depth or even starters. The Panthers saw this with tackle Daryl Williams who was drafted at No. 102 in 2015. After starting two games as a rookie he went on to start 10 games in 2016, then he became a second team All-Pro impact player in 2017 before getting derailed by injury.Teams that draft well around No. 100 get four years worth of weekly contributions at cap hits below $1 million. That’s as good of value as the NFL has to offer. The Panthers have probably wasted this week-in, week-out salary cap value by drafting a backup quarterback. Historical failure of quarterbacks drafted near No. 100Now, Cam Newton may not be healthy and it is possible Will Grier gets some starts next year. On top of that, Cam’s contract will also be up after the 2020 season so drafting Grier can help hedge against losing Cam in free agency, but then again it’s rare for players drafted near No. 100 to develop into franchise quarterbacks. If Grier was viewed as a franchise quarterback by even a handful of teams, there’s no way he would’ve fallen to the end of the third round. Based on data from Football Reference, a total of 20 quarterbacks were drafted between No. 85 and No. 115 (so No. 100 plus or minus 15) between 2005 and 2016. We’ll exclude players drafted in 2017 and 2018 due to their limited opportunities thus far. Click here for the full list. The top end of these 20 quarterbacks are Kyle Orton, Kirk Cousins Stitched Eric Reid Jersey , Nick Foles, Trent Edwards, and Colt McCoy. That’s the best case scenario based on recent history. On the other hand, 11 of these 20 players have started seven games or less in their careers which includes six players who are out of the NFL. The best approximation of the “average” quarterback drafted somewhere near No. 100 is a hybrid of Brodie Croyle, Matt Barkley, and Landry Jones. I’d trade a shot at a starting player at a position of need over those mediocre backup quarterbacks in a heartbeat. Again, I want Will Grier to succeed. I hope he defies the odds and becomes a solid NFL quarterback. The Panthers needed a better succession plan for Cam Newton than they had before the draft, but using a late third round pick as in insurance policy is an awfully high premium to pay.