Carolina Panthers: Luke Kuechly Deserves To Be A Top-Paid LB

By Raphael Garcia | Jul 20, 2015

This off-season, the Carolina Panthers are working hard to finish contract negotiations with two of their most important players. Cam Newton has signed a new deal that makes him one of the highest paid players in the league. Up next is linebacker Luke Kuechly. His contributions on the field have been vital to the Panthers’ success since he entered the league three short years ago. With that in mind, the leaders of the organization in Charlotte should work tirelessly to make sure he’s happy and paid well with his next deal.

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Kuechly was the No. 9 overall pick back in 2012 and is entering the fourth year of his rookie contract. That deal is set to pay him $2.1 million during the 2015 season.

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In those three years, Kuechly has been a force on the defensive side of the ball that any team would appreciate. He’s led tackles two of those three years, while winning the 2012 Defensive Rookie of the Year and the 2013 Defensive Player of the Year awards.

Carolina has worked hard to ensure that players vital to their success have signed deals this off-season. Newton has inked a new deal and Thomas Davis, another impactful linebacker, has signed a new deal as well. Kuechly should expect a well-paying deal as well.

Luckily for Carolina, they have a player that wants to be a part of this team.

“I want to be here,” Kuechly said during a team event as reported by Jonathan Jones. “I’m honestly not worried about it. I’m excited to be here, I think you guys know that by now, and that stuff will take care of itself. I’m just here to run around and play football.”

Looking at Kuechly’s contributions on the field, he deserves to be one of the top, if not the top paid, linebacker in the league. Justin Houston just agreed to a major deal with the Kansas City Chiefs worth $101 million dollars. According to Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer, negotiations for Kuechly’s new deal have started in the range of $12 to $12.5 million which is an increase to the $11 million that he’s expected to make this season

The size of Houston’s contract may set the bar from what Kuechly finally agrees with for the Panthers. Houston is perhaps the best outside linebacker in the league, while Kuechly has the stats to lay claim to that status from the inside linebacker position. Houston’s deal is worth nearly $16.8 million per year and the highest among all linebackers. It will be interesting to see how close Kuechly’s coming contract is to that figure.

If the Carolina Panthers are to build on the success that they achieved last season, it is imperative that they bring back the most important players on their roster. Kuechly is undoubtedly one of those players and the leader of this young and talented defensive unit. As he enters the final year of his rookie contract, he can expect a handsome reward for his years of great service on the field for this Panthers team.

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