The Carolina Panthers are in the midst of a transformative offseason for the club, particularly on offense. The team vaulted up to the No. 1 pick at this year's draft and is a virtual lock to take a quarterback at that spot. While it's unclear which of the top QB prospects will eventually be making his way to Charlotte, the Panthers are setting up a fascinating offense around him. The latest in this revamp to their offense is wideout D.J. Chark, who has agreed to a one-year deal with the franchise, the team announced.
Chark, who visited the club last week, had been a rumored target for the Panthers throughout the offseason and now pair him with a collection of new arrivals on offensive. The club has jumped headfirst into free agency by not only acquiring Chark, but also adding fellow wideout Adam Thielen, tight end Hayden Hurst and running back Miles Sanders. This is quite the makeover for Carolina at the receiver position after the Panthers shipped star pass catcher D.J. Moore to Chicago in that blockbuster trade to acquire the No. 1 overall pick.
Along with these new pieces to the offense, the Panthers have also brought aboard a new regime, hiring Frank Reich as their new head coach earlier this offseason.
As it relates to Chark, this will be the third stop in his first six years in the NFL. He was initially drafted Jacksonville Jaguars in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of LSU. There, enjoyed a 1,000-yard, Pro Bowl season in 2019. His final season for the Jaguars in 2021 was limited to just four games due to injury, and he eventually found his way to Detroit in free agency last offseason after inking a one-year, $10 million deal.
For the Lions, Chark put up solid totals when he was on the field. In 11 games, he caught 30 balls for 502 yards and three touchdowns. He'll likely be used as a key deep threat in Carolina's offense and his 16.7 yards per reception would have ranked second among Panthers wide receivers last season only looking up to Terrace Marshall Jr. (17.5 yards per reception).
The 26-year-old joins a Panthers wide receiver room that consists of Thielen, Marshall, and former Jaguars teammate Laviska Shenault Jr.
