Should Carolina Panthers sign Greg Jennings?

The Carolina Panthers are in the market for a wide receiver who can line up across from second-year pro Kelvin Benjamin, who looked a little less raw than expected as a rookie despite predictable issues with drops and unrefined route-running. Ricky Proehl was able to coax a strong first-year campaign out of Benjamin, who should be the team’s top receiver for years to come, largely thanks to his explosiveness vertically and his video game ability in contested catch situations.

It’s unclear if the Panthers will choose to address the position in the first or second round of the draft, but there’s no doubt that Cam Newton needs and deserves another quality receiver on the team. It looks like the Panthers could be eyeing the reliable Greg Jennings as the man across from Benjamin, as Black and Blue Review’s Bill Voth reports that Jennings met with team officials in Charlotte yesterday.

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Per Voth, “multiple teams” have shown interest in the former Minnesota Vikings receiver, but the Panthers are the first team to be concretely linked to the former Green Bay Packers star. Jennings never produced much in his two seasons with the Vikings, failing to catch 70 passes in either season, but he’s better than the counting stats indicate.

For example, even though Jennings had just 59 catches last season compared to the 68 catches he put up in 2013 in his first year with the team, his rate stats improved across the board. First of all, he was targeted 15 times less, but he turned in a slightly higher 64.8% catch rate on 91 targets, per Advanced Football Analytics. His real statistical boost came from an increase in yards per reception from 11.8 to 12.6, causing his yards per target to shoot up from 7.6 to 8.2.

Although he caught just 59 passes in his final season with the team, Jennings was a steady presence on the outside for rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, and his numbers shot up near the end of the season when Bridgewater started to hit his stride. 8.2 yards per target is nothing to sneeze at, and Jennings was only released for two reasons that don’t have to do with his playing ability. Firstly, the Vikings acquired Mike Wallace, and they wanted him since he’s a vertical threat. Secondly, Jennings was too expensive, so they saved $5 million in cap space by cutting ties with him.

On the surface, the Panthers make sense as a landing spot for Jennings, because this is a team that could use a dependable, still-talented receiver to counter Benjamin. Jennings would slot in as the “Z” receiver, and he has enough athletic ability left in the tank to threaten defenses. More importantly, he’s a better route-runner, so he can function as a possession guy in the intermediate game, which will help Benjamin downfield and allow him to face more one-on-one situations in which he’s generally favored to win the jump ball.

While some view Jennings as a free agent flop for the Vikings, I think it’s unfair to look at his reception totals and declare him a bust. He did make too much money and had to be released after the Wallace deal, but he also played well last season after a quietly solid 2013 campaign in the face of horrendous quarterback play. When the QB play in Minnesota improved, thanks to Bridgewater’s hot streak near the end of the year, so did Jennings’s numbers.

If the Carolina Panthers choose to sign Jennings, then it will be interesting to see if they are still keen on taking a wide receiver high in this year’s draft. As it stands right now, the receivers behind Benjamin are Jerricho Cotchery and Ted Ginn Jr. These two players are No. 4 receivers who can either move the chains (Cotchery) or provide a spark with the ball in their hands (Ginn Jr.), but they clearly aren’t No. 2 and 3-quality receivers.

Meanwhile, Greg Jennings is a No. 3 receiver at worst and an excellent No. 2 guy at best, and he could form a great partnership with Benjamin, especially since both players have differing skill-sets. If Jennings comes cheap, even with multiple teams interested, I have a hard time seeing a 31-year-old recovering from elbow surgery getting significant cash, then the Panthers should try to sign him up.

Oct 26, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Greg Jennings (15) runs with the ball during the first half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Signing Jennings prevents the wide receiver position from being a big draft day need, but it shouldn’t deter them from taking a receiver relatively high in the draft.

They can focus on a need in the secondary or on the offensive line if they sign the safe veteran wideout, but it would behoove them to select a talented wideout, possibly a slot guy or someone with downfield speed.

With Jennings on the squad, the Panthers would be able to go for a value pick at the deep position and put less pressure on that rookie to perform in his first season.

Everything is contingent on cost, but it’s good to see that the Panthers are taking a serious look at a veteran wideout who would be an immediate upgrade and is still capable of succeeding as a No. 2 receiver in this league.

The whole No. 1 and 2 designation isn’t always clear-cut, as these delineations are simplistic and often get blurred on actual teams. In Carolina, that would probably be the case, because if Jennings is signed and no better WR is drafted, then he and Benjamin would form more of a partnership as the “X” and “Z” receivers in the Panthers offense.

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