Panthers sign WR Avant

Jason Avant is the third receiver the Panthers have added since March 20. (USATSI)

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In the first five days of NFL free agency, it looked like the Panthers plan was to play the 2014 season without a wide receiver. Carolina sat back and watched as Steve Smith (Baltimore), Brandon LaFell (New England), Ted Ginn (Arizona) and Domenik Hixon (Chicago) all signed with different teams.

It turns out the Panthers will have wide receivers in 2014 though and one of them will be Jason Avant. The former Eagles receiver signed a one-year deal with Carolina on Monday, the team announced.

"We are happy to have Jason with the Panthers," head coach Ron Rivera said. "He provides a versatile player at receiver and brings good size as well as experience to the position."

The former Eagles receiver started a career-high 14 games in 2013 and caught 38 passes for 447 yards and two touchdowns. Avant isn't a No. 1 wide receiver, but he's a solid contributor who's topped the 375-yard mark in six of his eight NFL seasons.

Avant becomes the third wide receiver to sign with the Panthers over the past three weeks. Since March 20, Carolina has also added Jerricho Cotchery and Tiquan Underwood.

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Cleveland acquires former Lions WR Burleson



The Cleveland Browns have added a veteran wide receiver to line up opposite franchise superstar, Josh Gordon in 2014. Former Detroit Lions wideout Nate Burleson has agreed to a one-year deal with the Browns, according to ESPN insider Adam Schefter.Burleson is an 11 year NFL veteran. He spent the last four seasons in Detroit. In nine games in 2013, he caught 39 passes for 461 yards and one touchdown. Due to injuries, Burleson has only played a combined 15 games the past two seasons.



Burleson isn't a stud by any means, but he's a huge step up from what they had as their #2 wideout last season, which was either the less-than-sure-handed Greg Little or the troubled Davone Bess, depending on the week. Their 2nd best pass-catcher was tight end Jordan Cameron, who was an extremely pleasant surprise, hauling in 80 balls for 917 yards and seven touchdowns.Burleson missed a couple months last season due to a pizza-related car accident that left him with a broken arm, but he was effective when he played. He won't be a standout fantasy player in Cleveland, as they are currently showing Brian Hoyer as their quarterback. There is a chance that could be addressed through the draft, in which the Browns own the #4 overall pick.The real winner in this could possibly be stud receiver Josh Gordon. He finished the 2013 season with 87 catches for 1,646 yards and nine touchdowns. His yardage total was tops in the league. He did all this with the lack of a #2 that was a threat, and despite having three different starting QB's, as Hoyer, Jason Campbell, and Brandon Weeden took turns at the position.WIth the addition of Burleson, if they address their QB dilemma through the draft, Gordon could actually IMPROVE on last season. He missed two games. He didn't have a quarterback. He still led the league in receiving yards. It may be unfair to him, but he SHOULD have a better season... Think about that.