Last week the Carolina Panthers pulled off the most shocking trade in the NFL yet this season. Not that the move itself was shocking – everyone and their mother were expecting Diontae Johnson to get dealt before the trade deadline. No, the real stunner was how little the Panthers received from the Baltimore Ravens as part of the deal.

If you thought sending a sixth-round pick and paying pretty much all of Johnson’s salary the rest of the season and only getting a fifth back was a terrible return, you weren’t alone. Apparently, a lot of folks around the NFL were surprised at the compensation. According to Jonathan Jones at CBS Sports, his sources around the league were “floored.”

“Sources across the NFL were floored by thefor wide receiver Diontae Johnson… Usually teams get a higher draft pick by “buying” the contract, or a lower one by passing the contract along to the next team. In this case, the 1-7 Panthers got what may be a 10-12 pick improvement on Day 3 of the 2025 draft while also paying Johnson’s salary to go to Baltimore. Though there had been previously reported communication issues between Johnson and the team, the return was lower than expected. It was by far the lowest compensation of the four big-name receivs traded before the deadline.”

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