During the aftermath of Dave Gettleman making off with the company credit card in free agency, the Carolina Panthers need to free up some cash in anticipation of making more moves possibly, signing rookies, and allowing some space for any in-season acquisitions. Andy Lee is the first man to step up and take a team-friendly deal to help out.
The final two years of Lee’s contract have changed. His previous salaries for 2017 and 2018 have been reduced to $1.0 million and $1.1 million respectively. All bonus money is guaranteed, and has not changed.
In total, Lee loses about $2,000,000 in the deal. Maybe this is his way of (unnecessarily) apologizing to the Panthers for missing seven games last season. Either way, reports are that Lee loves being in Charlotte, and the team absolutely wants to keep him on the roster, as he was one of the best punters in the NFL last year until his injury. According to Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review, Carolina added $808,000 in space for 2017 and $1.93 million for 2018. Two pretty nice chunks of change coming from a specialist.
This pretty much guarantees that assuming he is again healthy, Andy Lee will be the punter for the Carolina Panthers next year. Which is ideal for everyone. Michael Palardy will get to show off his leg in camp, and I would not be surprised if another team takes a shot on him as a low cost punting option if he is released. Palardy did well last year after Lee left, and deserves to play somewhere.