The Carolina Panthers signed free-agent cornerback Duke Dawson to an undisclosed deal on Friday. The Panthers have some back-end depth issues at the position in training camp, so they will bring the former second-round pick by the New England Patriots in this summer. The 26-year-old spent his only two NFL seasons in 2019 and 2020 with the Denver Broncos, recording just 27 tackles (17 solo), two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery in 26 games (four starts).
Broncos Defense Loses Duke Dawson For Rest Of Season
Denver Broncos cornerback Duke Dawson (knee) was carted off the field in the Week 14 win over the Panthers and was diagnosed with a torn ACL and LCL and a sprained MCL following an MRI exam, according to a source. The former Patriots second-round pick will miss the final three games of the regular season. The 25-year-old had just eight tackles in 12 games (one start) for Denver this season and has 27 tackles in 26 games (four starts) in his two years in Denver. Dawson obviously wasn't a key contributor for Denver's secondary, but it's yet another loss to their already young and inexperienced secondary. Top cornerback A.J. Bouye was suspended for the rest of the season and they also lost rookie corner Essang Bassey to injury last week. The Broncos Defense has outperformed expectations this year given all their injuries to key players, but they'll be one to avoid in Week 15 against a high-powered Bills offense.
