The Panthers gave Jake Delhomme a lot of cash and security after his solid 2008 season.  Delhomme’s season ended with a thud in the playoffs but the Panthers still have faith in him.  Delhomme has enough arm to make all of the needed throws and he’s a smart guy often avoiding tight coverage.  Josh McCown will be Delhomme’s backup in 2009 again.  He has all of the tools (arm, mobility) to be an effective QB in the NFL but he’s never quite put everything together.  Still, he’s a solid #2 NFL QB.  Matt Moore will battle undrafted rookie Hunter Cantwell for the #3 job this summer.  Moore has the edge as he showed the Panthers what he could do in limited playing time.  Cantwell has the look of a practice squad QB due to him not starting many games in his college career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON:  B

The Panthers have signed undrafted rookie QB Hunter Cantwell to a 1-year deal.  Cantwell is a big guy at 6′4″, 235 pounds.  He played in 30 games (8 starts) in his career at Louisville and he completed 313 of 534 passes (58.6%) for 3,912 yards with 26 TD passes and 23 interceptions.  Cantwell will have his hands full trying to beat out Matt Moore for the #3 QB job for the Panthers in 2009.

Sherrod Martin has outstanding measureables as he is 6′0″, 197 pounds and he runs a 4.4 40. Martin is not the best tackler in the world but he should be good enough to get by. Martin played in 46 games (37 starts) in 4 years at Troy making 292 tackles, breaking up 23 passes, he had 9 interceptions (73 yards), forced 9 fumbles and he recovered 3 fumbles. This was a good pick for the Panthers as Martin should earn a lot of playing time as a rookie.

The Panthers had Everette Brown graded as a first round pick and that’s what convinced them to trade a first round pick in 2010 to get him.  Brown is 6′4″, 250 pounds and he runs a 4.65 40.  Brown is so fast off the ball that he spends a lot of time in the opposing backfield and that’s what the Panthers are banking on.  Brown played in 39 games (25 starts) in three years at Florida State and he made 100 tackles, had 46.5 tackles for a loss, had 23 sacks, batted down 5 balls, forced 5 fumbles and he recovered 1 fumble.  Look for Brown to line up opposite Julius Peppers (assuming he’s still on the team) and getting into opposing backfields often as a rookie.

The Panthers have acquired long snapper J.J. Jansen from the Packers for a undisclosed 2011 Draft Pick.  Jansen was an undrafted free agent who spent his rookie season on the Injured Reserve List.  The Panthers will likely start him as he will replace Jason Kyle as long as he’s healthy.