Karlos Dansby: 5 years 43 million 22 million guaranteed

Patrick Willis: 7 years 54 million 29 million guaranteed

Jon Beason: 5 years 50 million 25 million guaranteed

Look Beason is a very good player, but you can’t possibly argue that Beason is worth more than Dansby and Willis. You can’t argue that Beason deserved to be the highest paid middle linebacker in NFL history. If you’re going to pay a defensive player who doesn’t rush the passer or cover receivers 10 million per year for 5 years with half of that guaranteed, you better make damn sure he’s the best player in the league at his position and Beason just isn’t. He’s a great player, but he’s not the best. At best, you can argue he’s on the same level as Dansby. The Panthers overpaid by about 7-10 million.

Grade: C