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Carolina Panthers extend Thomas Davis

By Kevin Parvizi

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The Carolina Panthers surprised many of us by drafting Washington Huskies outside linebacker project Shaq Thompson, who is one of the most athletic players in this year’s rookie class, in the first round, but they have still always been interested in extending veteran OLB Thomas Davis, who is now 32. Some initially saw Thompson as a possible heir-apparent for Davis, but any takeover won’t happen for at least another three seasons.

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That’s because, according to the Charlotte Observer’s Joe Person, the Panthers and Davis have agreed to a two-year extension that will keep Davis in Carolina through the 2017 season. The 2016 to 2018 seasons under Davis’s current contract are voidable years, so this two-year extension has been tacked onto the $7.25 million that the star linebacker will make this upcoming season.

Per Person, Davis’s deal, which is expected to be signed by the player today, will likely be worth $18 million in total over these next three seasons (including this year). It’s unclear how much guaranteed money the veteran will make or how the money will be spread out, so we’ll have to wait for further information from Person and other reporters before evaluating this deal for both parties.

The important thing here is that both sides were able to get an important deal done, as Davis is a key part of this team as one of the NFL’s best coverage linebackers. He may be 32, but his comeback from three ACL tears and his work as a leader, player, and community man have been well-noted. Davis is exactly the kind of talent and fan favorite that every franchise wants to keep, and both he and fellow star linebacker Luke Kuechly are two of the best in the business and two of Carolina’s most important players.

Last season, Thomas Davis showed off his importance to the Panthers on the stat sheet by recording 100 tackles, which marked the third straight season of his with at least triple digits in the tackles column. He also added two sacks and three passes defended, and he regularly thwarts running backs in coverage. There aren’t many outside linebackers who are as smart, instinctive, and well-rounded as Davis, and he and Kuechly are the heart and soul of a defense that was downright scary in 2013 before regressing a tad last season.

Under his previous contract, Davis was set to count $9.9 million against the cap with $5.4 million in dead money if released, so we’ll see if the guarantees or salary this season change in any way with the deal. Since he was set to make $7.25 million in base salary this year, the two new years on his contract would be worth $10.75 million if his previous contract remains unchanged and if his deal is worth exactly $18 million over three seasons.

And then there’s this:

Now, per ESPN’s Adam Caplan, the Carolina Panthers have officially announced the two-year extension. He’ll almost certainly retire with the Panthers organization, and that’s what we call a happy ending for one of the NFL’s sports’s best comeback stories in history.

Next: Breaking down Panthers LBs

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