Panthers Add Depth In Secondary By Signing Former Patriots Cornerback

A former New England Patriots cornerback has found his way to Carolina.

The Panthers announced Friday that they signed defensive back Duke Dawson, who the Patriots selected in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Dawson will bring added depth to Carolina’s secondary with last year’s first-round pick Jaycee Horn still on the physically unable to perform list at the start of training camp.

Dawson was a complete bust with the Patriots and never came close to living up to his second-round draft label. Dawson never played a single snap in a regular season game for New England — he spent the 2018 season on injured reserve due to a hamstring injury — before getting traded to the Denver Broncos prior to the start of the 2019 campaign.

Dawson, 26, hasn’t produced much in his three seasons with the Broncos. The 5-foot-10, 198-pound corner totaled 26 tackles and no interceptions during his first two years with the team. Dawson didn’t see any game action last year due to injury before spending time on Denver’s practice squad.

Dawson will get a chance to exact a little bit of revenge on the Patriots this summer, and maybe show his former team they should have stuck with him. The Panthers will travel to Foxboro to take part in joint practices from Aug. 16-17.