The biggest free agent of the 2025 offseason has now confirmed that the Carolina Panthers were very, very close to reeling him in.
Defensive lineman Milton Williams, who landed a four-year, $104 million contract with the New England Patriots a little over a week ago, joined Friday's episode of The Insiders on NFL Network. He was asked about his experience during the negotiation process, a hotly-contested competition that the Panthers nearly won.
"My agent was on the phone, and I was kind of in the room," Williams said, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com. "They were on the phone talking to teams, and teams were coming in with new deals. There was a lot going on, and it happened really fast. They talked about Carolina then and I was like, 'alright, it sounds like the best offer we are going to get, so, we were going to go there.' Then, a split second later, New England hopped on and was like, 'Nah, this is what we got for you.' Carolina felt like they went too high on their number, so, they stayed at where they were at. New England came in, and it was [over] after that. They wanted me the most and made me a priority. So, I made them a priority."
Multiple reports, about an hour into the legal tampering period back on March 10, indicated that the Panthers were close to finalizing a deal with the rising 25-year-old defender. Williams, according to Cayden Steele of nj.com, also had the Arizona Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings vying for his services.
But as Williams stated, New England swooped in to nab him before he accepted the offer from Carolina.
The Panthers quickly pivoted—reaching agreements with defensive linemen Tershawn Wharton and Bobby Brown III as well as outside linebacker Pat Jones II and safety Tre'von Moehrig later that afternoon.
