Carolina Panthers general manager Dave Gettleman continues to be the target of offseason scrutiny surrounding his handling, or non handling, of Kawann Short’s contract extension. While casual observers may feel Gettleman is just being tight with owner Jerry Richardson’s money, a closer look reveals he may be simply making smart business decisions.

First, let us state the obvious. Kawann Short is a tremendous young player that deserves to be paid. Good, we all agree. Many national pundits stop there, but lets instead think as a good general manager might.

Signing Kawann Short today would lock him up for several years on the Carolina Panthers roster at a premium price. A price so high it would likely effect all remaining contracts this year and next. A price that could make it more difficult to keep other valuable Carolina Panthers players. For example, Kony Ealy, Trai Turner and Andrew Norwell contract extensions will be coming up sooner than you think. All three are currently playing under their affordable rookie contracts. None have fifth year options, as none were first round selections. In other words, three very important Panthers players will soon be paid and extended, likely by this time next year.

What does Gettleman risk by not signing Short immediately? He risks a Kawann Short holdout next year if/when he decides to place the dreaded NFL franchise tag on him. That’s it, that’s all. Gettleman delays paying the man what he would have paid him anyways by one year. Dave Gettleman still has the exact same opportunity to sign Short to a long term contract next year.

Now lets look at the benefits of not signing Short to an expensive long term deal today. For starters, 2016 will be a contract year for Kawann. Historically, contract years have provided extra motivation for NFL players, hoping to cash in on their production. Kawann was fantastic in a non-contract year last season. Imagine what he may do this year with the extra monetary incentive.

Then consider the rookie Vernon Butler, who has impressed so far this offseason. What if, by chance, there is little drop off between Butler and Short? Suddenly not extending Kawann Short and keeping Vernon Butler (who as has FIVE affordable seasons ahead of him) looks like a brilliant move. Will Butler be as good as Short? Who knows, but crazier things have happened. If so, extending Ealy, Turner, and Norwell long term next year becomes much easier.

Lastly, what happens if Short does regress this in 2016. As unlikely as that sounds, it does happen. If so, his price tag would then drop substantially next year while still having a promising career ahead of him. Gettleman would benefit from having patience to wait and see. Perhaps patience really is a virtue after all.

Looking at the entire picture described above, it appears to me that Dave Gettleman stands to lose very little (if anything at all) by not extending Kawann Short’s contract today. However, he has plenty to gain by taking a “wait and see approach”. In other words…chess, not checkers.

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