CHARLOTTE, NC – The Carolina Panthers agreed Wednesday with a deal with freeback AJ Bouye as he tries to improve on his side in this month’s NFL draft.
Bouye, the Pro Bowler in 2017, will be suspended for the first two games of the 2021 season as part of a six-game ban he received last year for violations of the league’s performance-enhancing policy.
He will be allowed to participate in off-season and preseason practices, according to the league.
Carolina signed 10-year veteran corner Rashaan Melvin to a deal a year earlier in the free agency.
Bouye, 29, was released by Denver in February after appearing in just seven games due to injury and suspension. He was traded to the Jacksonville Broncos in March 2020, after being a big part of the Jaguars’ run in the 2017 AFC championship game.
Bouye joined the NFL in 2013, with Houston as his raw agent. He played well enough to receive a five-year, $ 67.5 million contract with Jacksonville in 2017.
He had six interceptions that season in 16 starts. He has only had two picks since then and had none for Denver last year. In 69 career starts, he has 14 interceptions in total.
Bouye will likely be created as a starter in Carolina, alongside Donte Jackson, who is in the final year of his rookie deal.
The former Central Florida notable will compete with Melvin, probably on the right.
The addition of Bouye reduces the urgency of using selection no. 8 of the sketch on a corner. The team eliminated the need to draft a quarterback on Monday after trading with the New York Jets for Sam Darnold, but general manager Scott Fitterer said that does not completely rule out the use of the best choice in this position.
“What we wanted to do in this free agency project, through this trade with Sam, was just get rid of all the needs we have,” Fitterer said Monday. “We wanted to get to a place where the roster was in a good place and we could get the best player in 8th place.”