Charles Johnson Re-Signs with Carolina Panthers on 2-Year Contract

Defensive end Charles Johnson and the Carolina Panthers agreed to a two-year contract Tuesday that will keep him with the organization through the 2018 season.

Carolina announced the deal but did not release financial terms.

"It's great to have Charles back," coach Ron Rivera said, per Bryan Strickland of the Panthers' website. "He has spent his entire career with the Panthers, has emerged as a leader for us in the last few years and is a big part of the reason we've had the success we've had. We look forward to having Charles continue to be part of our team."

Johnson was once among the NFL's most impactful defensive linemen. He racked up 52.5 sacks across a five-year span starting in 2010. That production represented terrific value for the franchise, which selected him in the third round of the 2007 draft.

The 30-year-old Georgia product didn't generate much pressure on the quarterback over the last two seasons, though, tallying just five sacks in 22 games.

His lackluster 2016 campaign came after he signed a one-year contract to stay with the Panthers amid interest from around the league. He explained the thinking behind that decision to Max Henson of the team's website last March.

"Once you put all that energy into it, I feel like I would have been wasting all that work had I gone somewhere else for some dollars," Johnson said. "I'd rather be happy doing what I'm doing around people that I know and I'm comfortable with."

A bounce-back campaign may have earned Johnson one more lucrative contract in Carolina or elsewhere.

After the season ended, however, he joked about looking in the newspaper for job opportunities as he prepared to enter the free-agent fray for the second straight offseason, per Nick Carboni of WCNC in Charlotte:

Things didn't reach that point, and Johnson's track record and the demand for edge-rushers worked to his advantage in terms of generating a market.

Johnson and the Panthers found enough common ground to keep him in the only professional uniform he's ever known. It was another step toward Johnson's spending his entire career with the franchise, a rare feat for somebody who's played in the NFL for a decade.

Carolina will likely bring in competition for playing time up front, though, so the veteran may need a good showing during training camp and the preseason to keep his starting spot. And it wouldn't be a surprise to see him pushed into a reserve role.