Report: Carolina has not held trade talks over Christian McCaffrey
Matt Rhule was let go in Carolina on Monday, with a new era beginning for the NFC South franchise. The head coach is not the only one who could possibly leave town, with the Panthers possibly willing to trade away some of their players. Star running back Christian McCaffrey has been viewed as one, even before Rhule’s departure.
However, according to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Carolina has not held any trade talks regarding McCaffrey. The Buffalo Bills are seen as the favorites if anything does occur but Pelissero points out every team will be “working the phones.” But for now, nothing seems imminent on the Panthers’ end with McCaffrey.
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“The #Panthers haven’t had trade talks about Christian McCaffrey with the #Bills or any other team this season, per sources,” Pelissero said. “Carolina already paid most of his $8.6M salary in a bonus. Every team will be working the phones the next few weeks, but nothing in the works with CMC.”
McCaffrey has been the staple offensive weapon for Carolina since he joined the organization. If they do eventually trade away the running back, it would truly be the end of an era. There’s still plenty of time until the trade deadline as the Panthers continue to have a murky future.
Report: Multiple teams interested in Christian McCaffery
According to Michael Balko, several teams have reached out already to gauge the availability of McCaffrey. He says he confirmed that the Buffalo Bills are among those teams but, in total, he’s reporting four to six teams have already made calls to Carolina today.
Take away the injury history and McCaffrey is one of the best offensive weapons in the league. He has rushed for 324 yards and two touchdowns through the first fives games of the season. As a dual threat, he has also caught 26 catches for 188 yards and a touchdown.
Teams would have to get over the injury history, though, as he has played in just 15 games since 2020. While he may be even better with Rhule out, this could also be his opportunity to get out of Carolina after six seasons with the Panthers.
Carolina has a ton of players that teams could talk themselves into having an interest in if these reports are true. McCaffrey is elite, DJ Moore and Robbie Anderson are talented receivers, and they have more than one option in their quarterback room. That’s not even to mention some of their pieces on defense.