A Carolina Panthers in-house free agent seemingly had real interest from most of the NFL . . . literally.
Safety Sam Franklin Jr., who spent the first five years of his pro career with the Panthers, recently joined the Denver Broncos on a new one-year deal. And according to Broncos reporter Mike Klis of 9News, the 29-year-old defensive back had similar offers from 17 teams.
One of those teams may have been the Panthers. Back in February, Joe Person of The Athletic wrote that Carolina was interested in bringing Franklin Jr.