Panthers could benefit in Diontae Johnson trade talks with WR market dwindling

No market has seen more movement than the wide receiver market. It all started with a slew of massive extensions over the offseason, and that has carried over into the form of trades during the season.

Davante Adams got the ball rolling by getting traded to the New York Jets. Just hours later, Amari Cooper was shipped off to the Buffalo Bills. The Kansas City Chiefs responded by acquiring DeAndre Hopkins. Arguably the three best wide receivers available at the trade deadline were dealt within days of each other, thinning the market significantly.

Christian Kirk's season-ending injury depleted that even further, as he was another intriguing and available receiver for teams to acquire. Now, it's anyone's best guess as to who is available.

Cooper Kupp makes sense as a trade target given the fact that he's on the 3-4 Los Angeles Rams, but that Rams team has won two in a row and is as healthy as it has been in a while. It feels unlikely at best that they trade him. Tee Higgins is another receiver who has seen some attention on the market, but even at 3-5, the Cincinnati Bengals are in playoff contention. It's unlikely that they get rid of him, either.

With so many once-available targets no longer out there for one reason or another, that leaves Diontae Johnson and not much else out there for teams that need wide receiver help. With that in mind, the Carolina Panthers are in a prime position to capitalize.

Carolina is 1-7 on the season after their Week 8 loss, making their position as sellers obvious. Selling means parting with players on expiring deals, at the very least, and Johnson fits that bill. He's almost certainly going to go somewhere, and his price might be higher than Carolina expected.

Panthers are in position to benefit greatly on suddenly depleting WR market

Johnson is far from the game-changer that players like Adams, Cooper, and Hopkins are, but there's a reason that he's such a popular trade target. He's rock-solid. The 28-year-old spent his first five seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and while he only had one 1,000-yard season, Johnson consistently hovered around that number.

His first season with the Panthers has been more of the same, as he has 357 receiving yards and three touchdowns through his first seven games of the season. He's on pace to be right around the 1,000-yard mark again.

All Johnson went for over the offseason was Donte Jackson and a late-round pick swap - not much at all. He won't go for much more than that now, considering the fact that he's in the final year of his deal, with ESPN senior NFL insider Adam Schefter reporting that the Panthers are looking for a mid-round pick for him. But Johnson being one of a select few available and reliable options out there, will undoubtedly increase his price.

Who else will wide receiver-needy teams trade for? All of the elite options who were realistically available are off the board. Even a guy like Kirk, who likely had comparable value to Johnson, is now out. Who else is there other than the Darius Slayton's and Mike Williams' of the world? The Panthers appear to be in a prime position to cash in on Johnson better than they thought, which, in a dismal year, is a nice win.