Coming off his first Pro Bowl appearance, Carolina Panthers defensive tackle Kawann Short is looking for a new contract.
The former second-round pick recorded 55 tackles and a whopping 11 sacks from the interior of Carolina’s defensive line last season. In reality, he was one of the primary reasons the Panthers shocked the football world en route to a surprise Super Bowl appearance.
Short, 27, is now staying away from the team’s organized off-season activities this week due to the lack of a new contract.
Bill Voth of the Black and Blue Review is suggesting that Short could also hold out of mandatory minicamp next week due to the contract stalemate.
Set to earn $1.5 million in the final year of his rookie deal, Short obviously believes he should receive a pretty hefty raise.
It’s pure conjecture here, but something in the range of $10 to $15 million seems to make sense for Short. That would place him among the five highest-paid interior defensive linemen in the NFL.
After removing the franchise tag it placed on Josh Norman and seeing the corner leave for Washington free agency, Carolina is nearly $30 million under the cap.
It would then make sense for the team to potentially agree to a new deal with Short while front-loading the guarantees for the 2016 season.
If nothing comes to fruition here, there’s a possibility Short will hold out of training camp. Needless to say, that would be a big blow to the defending NFC champs.