The Carolina Panthers have a lot of work to do this offseason, and the first order of business is figuring out what to do with linebackers Brian Burns and Frankie Luvu. While Burns is the top priority that the team views as a foundational piece of the defense, Luvu himself is no scrub.
Frankie Luvu had his best season with the Panthers last year, setting career-highs in tackles (125) and quarterback hits (11) while recording 10 tackles-for-loss and 5.5 sacks. He’s no Luke Kuechly, but he is a reliable starter in the heart of one of the more underrated defenses in the league.
The team tried to extend him during the 2023 offseason, but that was under a different head coach and general manager. However, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the team still wants Luvu to be a featured part of the defense in 2024 and beyond.
“The Carolina Panthers are expected to try to re-sign do-it-all linebacker Frankie Luvu,” Fowler writes. “Both sides discussed a potential deal last summer and didn’t agree, but those talks could heat up around the combine.”
Carolina Panthers Trying to Re-Sign Frankie Luvu (Report)
The most important thing to take from this report is that the Carolina Panthers and Frankie Luvu won’t come to terms on a new deal in the next day or two. The NFL Combine takes place from February 26th until March 4th, so it will probably take at least a few weeks before these two sides agree to any deal.
The NFL Combine is a key part of the offseason not only for the draft prospects but also for impending free agents. While the legal tampering period doesn’t technically begin until three days before free agency, a whole bunch of illegal tampering goes down during the Combine. Chances are, Frankie Luvu and the Panthers will have a good idea as to what he can get on the open market and will try to negotiate a deal based on that.
For what it’s worth, Spotrac believes that Luvu will receive a deal worth approximately $11.2 million per season. This isn’t just blind speculation, as they arrived at this number by comparing Luvu to comparable linebackers like Ja’Whaun Bentley, Alex Anzalone, and De’Vondre Campbell. While only time will tell what deal Frankie Luvu gets, this is a good starting point for Panthers fans.
Spotrac Contract Projections
As of this posting, the Carolina Panthers have $31.03 million in available cap space, so in a vacuum, they could easily afford to bring back Frankie Luvu. The Panthers could easily afford that cap hit, especially if they structure the deal to have lower cap hits in the immediate future. However, they need to set aside some money for Brian Burns and at least one or two wide receivers.
There is a real possibility that Brian Burns will determine Frankie Luvu’s future with the Carolina Panthers. If Burns and the Panthers can’t come to terms on a long-term deal, then Carolina will use the franchise tag to keep him around for another season. The projected franchise tag number for linebackers is $22.79 million, which would eat into most of Carolina’s cap space.
The Panthers need to prioritize the offense if they ever want Bryce Young to succeed, so they might not be able to afford Frankie Luvu, Burns on the franchise tag, and a few good wide receivers. In this scenario, Luvu will probably be the odd-man out and play on a new team next year.
Main Photo: Jim Dedmon – USA Today Sports
