NFL.com suggested this week that Carolina Panthers wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr could be traded before the start of the 2022 season.
If that’s the case, then the Cincinnati Bengals should quickly be in touch with Carolina’s front office.
Marshall was selected in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Panthers.
Last season, however, didn’t go very smoothly for the former LSU star. Marshall caught just 17 passes for 138 yards.
From NFL:
THIS IS PURE CONJECTURE HERE; WE’VE HEARD NO CREDIBLE REPORTS THE PANTHERS ARE SHOPPING MARSHALL.
BUT IT’S HARD NOT TO SEE MATT RHULE’S FRUSTRATION MOUNTING WITH THE 2021 SECOND-ROUNDER, WHO HAS BATTLED A HAMSTRING INJURY.
MARSHALL WAS BACK IN ACTION LAST WEEK DURING THE PATRIOTS’ JOINT PRACTICES, BUT HE TWEAKED THE HAMSTRING AND DID NOT PLAY IN THE GAME. “WE NEED TERRACE TO START PRACTICING,” RHULE SAID. “WE NEED HIM TO STEP UP.”
A TRADE MIGHT BE A BIT OF A DRAMATIC STEP TO TAKE AT THIS STAGE, UNLESS THE PANTHERS TRULY DON’T BELIEVE MARSHALL CAN OVERCOME THE HEALTH ISSUES THAT APPARENTLY HAVE FOLLOWED HIM FROM LSU TO CHARLOTTE.
OTHER PANTHERS RECEIVERS, INCLUDING SHI SMITH AND RASHARD HIGGINS, HAVE STEPPED UP IN MARSHALL’S ABSENCE.
BUT IS IT ENOUGH TO CONVINCE GM SCOTT FITTERER TO TRADE AWAY ONE OF HIS FIRST CAROLINA DRAFT PICKS?
Marshall struggled in Carolina last season, but that had more to do with Panthers head coach Matt.
Rhule than Marshall’s abilities. It’s far too early to pass judgment on the young wide receiver.
The Bengals have arguably the best wide receiver trio in the NFL in Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd. Their depth, however, is less-than-ideal.
Marshall showed in 2019 at LSU that he has plenty of chemistry with Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
The former Tigers wide receiver caught 46 passes for 671 yards and 13 touchdowns while playing with Joe Burrow in Baton Rouge (nearly 25 percent of Marshall’s 106 receptions at LSU went for a touchdown…insane).
You might not think those are eye-popping numbers, but it’s important to remember that Marshall was a sophomore playing behind Chase and Justin Jefferson.
That makes those numbers a little more impressive when you realize he was having to fight for targets.
If the Panthers decide they’re ready to move on from Marshall, the Bengals should try to steal him for a late-round pick.
It would be a low-risk/high-reward move. It would also mean that Burrow would have three wide receivers in Cincy that played in the College Football Playoff Championship game in early 2020 (Chase, Higgins, and Marshall).
This isn’t a move that would change Cincinnati’s fortunes in 2022, but it would make their wide receiver group deeper and it would give Burrow another weapon. Sounds like a no-brainer to me.
