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The Panthers are 1-5, and just fired their general manager.

So predictably, the buzzards are circling.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter says teams are contacting the Panthers to ask about the availability of running back DeAngelo Williams, and that the Panthers are “willing to listen.”

Of course, there’s a gulf between “willing to listen” and “able to make a deal.” Without a general manager, the Panthers are left with a committee of administrators, personnel men and coaches, and getting the owner to let them sign off on a major decision might be difficult, especially if teams aren’t offering much in terms of picks, or just trying offload a bad contract of their own.

Then again, it wouldn’t be unprecedented for a team to try to float a possibility in hopes of buying low.

Williams still has value, as he still averages 5.0 yards per carry for his career. But the Panthers have made a choice they were going to make anyway, with the more recently paid Jonathan Stewart getting the bulk of the work moving forward.

All the guaranteed money in Williams’ post-lockout deal was in the first two years, so signing Stewart was an indication he wasn’t a long-term factor anyway.

Now the timing of his departure will be the issue, whether it’s by Tuesday’s deadline or this offseason.