So if Matt Paradis is so great and the second coming of Ryan Kalil and a PFF favorite and everything that the Panthers hope he will be, why would the Broncos let a player like that walk in the first place?
Salary cap priorities were obviously a factor in Denver letting Paradis hit the open market last week. So was his health, apparently. Paradis suffered a broken fibula against the Texans back in November, which ended his 2018 season early. Broncos general manager John Elway wishes Paradis well, but he says his team had concerns about his ankle, per Zack Kelbermann at CBS Sports.
“I think that obviously we didn’t want to lose Matt, but we had real concerns about the ankle. That is why that didn’t work out. I’m happy for Matt. I really am. I’m happy for Matt that he got the opportunity in Carolina. It had nothing to do with Matt’s ability, but we had big concerns about that ankle. Like I said, I’m happy for Matt that he got what he got from Carolina. I hope that works out for him.”
We’ll just go ahead and assume that Elway was talking about the fibula in the interest of not thinking too hard about anything Elway says in particular.
Nevertheless, it is a legitimate concern.
Paradis had started every game over the previous three and a half seasons before it happened, but his injury was a serious one and it’s going to take time for him to return to being the player he was. Some athletes never fully recover from an injury like that, but you can’t always assume the worst when you’re looking to build a team.
Health concerns aside, this should turn out to be a good signing by the Panthers.
