The Carolina Panthers announced today that they have cut defensive tackle Ron Edwards, in a move that saves the organization nearly $2.5 million in cap space.

This should come as no surprise to Panthers fans. Edwards was a solid player in the middle when healthy, but never seen as a long-term option. Age, and cap figure created a scenario where it was no longer tenable to retain him -- and now Carolina move forward down one of their three Edwards's.

Fellow defensive tackle Dwan is expected to be retained. The team has made it clear they'd like to keep the talented under tackle, while wide receiver Steve Smith called it an important move for the organization to make.

Cutting Ron Edwards could open the door for a new defensive tackle, either through the draft or free agency. Chris Canty, formerly of the New York Giants voiced his desire to play for the Panthers -- saying he would be willing to offer the team a hometown discount to return to North Carolina. Meanwhile, a popular mock draft target for the team has been DT, with Sharrif Floyd, Sheldon Richardson, and Star Lotulelei headlining the class.

Note: There are conflicting reports about how much cap space the Panthers have. According to Joseph Person, via Twitter the team is still $3.5 million over. While Spotrac have the Panthers just $9,000 under the cap. I had the opportunity to ask Person if he was including the $3.6 million cap rollover from 2012, and he is.

It appears we'll have to wait a little longer to know exactly how well the team are doing.