Carolina cornerback Donte Jackson has a $15.7 million salary cap hit in 2024, but none of his money is guaranteed. Which means moving on from him is an easy choice for the Panthers.
And that’s exactly what the Panthers will do: They’ll either release or trade Jackson before his $4 million roster bonus is due on March 16, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.
By cutting or trading Jackson, the Panthers would get $5.9 million in cap space. He’ll still count $9.8 million against the cap in dead money.
The 28-year-old Jackson has played his entire NFL career for the Panthers, who drafted him out of LSU in the second round in 2018. He bounced back from a torn Achilles in 2022 to start 16 games in 2023, but at this point in his career the Panthers don’t think he’s worth the kind of money they’re paying him, and he’ll soon find out whether any other team will pay him.