On Thursday, the Carolina Panthers picked nepotism over logic — signing left tackle Matt Kalil to a five-year, $55.5 million deal with $25 million guaranteed. Matt Kalil is the brother of Panthers center Ryan Kalil.
#Panthers will sign left tackle Matt Kalil to a five-year, $55.5 million deal with $25 million guaranteed, source said.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 9, 2017
Let’s not mince words here. Matt Kalil is one of, if not the worst tackle in football. Signing him to a deal for the veteran minimum would be an eyebrow-raising move. Signing him for five years — until Kalil is 32 years old — with $25 million guaranteed is frank incompetence.
In 2015, Kalil was the “anchor” of a Minnesota Vikings offensive line which ranked 29th in adjusted sack rate. In 2016, Kalil played two games and had a 36.9 PFF grade before going on IR with a hip injury. There is no logic to this move, whatsoever. There is nothing on tape, no stat and no spreadsheet that indicates Kalil will ever be worth half the money the Panthers gave him.
We’re sure, however, that his brother is pretty happy.