Reggie Returns

Reggie White, the Minister of Defense... the King of the Sack... the Prince of Pass Rush...

Reggie White, the National Football Leagues's all-time sack leader, has apparently agreed to terms with the Carolina Panthers and will play the 2000 season at defensive end for them after a one year retirement from the game. Terms of the contract that White is expected to sign call for Reggie to make $20 million over the next five years.

Reggie has recorded 192 1/2 sacks in 14 seasons in the league, the most sacks by any NFL defender since the league started keeping records. He has played in two Super Bowls and 13 Pro Bowls and he has scared the holy Hades out of dozens of quarterbacks.

Reggie is most definitely one of the all-time great defensive lineman in NFL history and will surely be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but Reggie is 38 years old now, and he has not played a down of football since the end of the 1998 season.

Picking up Reggie White was a very risky move for the Panthers, especially for the price they paid to get him. Not only will he cost them about $5 million over the next two seasons, but he also takes Carolina out of the running for Eric Swann, who would have been a much better fit for the Panthers.

The fact that the contract is reported to be for a length of five years is a joke in itself. That would make Reggie 43 years old when the 2004 season rolls around. What could the Panthers possibly have planned for Reggie by that time? A position as player/coach? Or maybe player/pastor would be more appropriate.

The reality of the situation is that Reggie will probably play two more seasons at the most, and that second season is, by no means, written in stone.

Reggie will most likely be relegated to the roll of third-down pass rusher, but he will have to prove that he can still get to the quarterback. Apparently Reggie has been working out since the beginning of the year, but he has not seen any real action in a year and a half. Who knows how his 38 year old legs are going to respond when he gets into the live action.

Reggie White is one of the great pass rushers of all time, but I'm sorry to see him coming back. I do not think we will see the Reggie we were use to seeing, and I do not think he will get the job done on a consistent basis.

If the Panthers were willing to roll the dice and pay the cash, Eric Swann would have been the better choice. White was dominating in his prime, but he is never going to be that dominant again. Swann is only 30 years old, so he is still young enough that he could possibly return to being the great player he once was if he can recover from his knee problems. With Swann you also have a much better chance of having him finishing out his contract as an essential part of the team.

Reggie was great in his time, but the Panthers are not going to see much of that side of the future hall of famer. I think this is a decision the Carolina Panthers will really regret!

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