All eyes are on Tuesday’s trade deadline to see if the Carolina Panthers can stock up on more assets heading into the 2024 offseason. But the ripple effects of general manager Dan Morgan trading away Pro Bowl wide receiver Diontae Johnson to the Baltimore Ravens remains a hot topic of discussion in the league.

The Panthers acquired Johnson via trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason. After an encouraging summer, big things were expected. It didn’t take long for things to unfold, eventually leading to his immediate AFC North return for pennies on the dollar.

Carolina moved up a few spots on Day 3 of the draft and had to absorb most of Johnson’s remaining salary to get the deal done. This was met with widespread consternation among the fanbase, who always thought a move was inevitable but were outraged by what the Panthers received for the veteran pass catcher.

Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports highlighted similar thoughts on the deal when speaking to league sources. The senior insider revealed that the people he spoke to were shocked by what Morgan accepted for Johnson, especially considering what older wideouts were already ordering beforehand.

“NFL sources were impressed with the lack of compensation Carolina received for wide receiver Diontae Johnson. Typically, teams receive a higher draft pick by ‘buying’ the contract, or a lower one by passing the contract to the next team In this case, the 1-7 Panthers received a possible 10-12 improvement on Day 3 of the 2025 draft, while also paying Johnson’s salary to go to Baltimore. Although communication issues had previously been reported between Johnson and the team. the return was lower than expected. It was by far the lowest compensation of the four wide receivers traded before the deadline.

– Jonathan Jones, CBS Sports

Was the compensation ideal? No. However, it is also clear that the Panthers wanted to get rid of this problem in any way possible.

Johnson quickly became a distraction. He expected better and wasn’t shy about making his feelings known about this team’s lack of execution on both sides of the football. There was also the quarterback issue, which wasn’t exactly welcomed by the former third-round pick out of Toledo.

The Panthers felt the time was right to get their young players more involved. Xavier Legette, Jalen Coker and tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders have all shown tremendous promise in recent weeks. It’s not perfect by any means, but it will do wonders for their long-term development if they get high-profile reps and targets in a competitive environment.

Whether the likes of Miles Sanders, Jadeveon Clowney and Adam Thielen will suffer a similar fate in the coming hours remains to be seen. The Panthers could have more players who provide short-term value, but that’s it. This time they want something in return after getting almost nothing for Johnson.

It’s a fine line and time is of the essence. Johnson isn’t shedding many tears after landing on a legitimate Super Bowl contender. As for Morgan? He is weathering the storm and trying to do right by the franchise as part of his long-term plans.

If that means removing Johnson and possibly ousting other establishment figures, then so be it. Either way, the time for half measures is over.

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