Norman sought a $16 million annual salary from the Panthers, the Charlotte Observer reported.
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Josh Norman’s brief voyage into free agency is over. It is unlikely the 49ers will enter a bidding war that could make him the highest-paid player on the team, the source said. Their offense of Kirk Cousins, Jordan Reed, DeSean Jackson, and Pierre Garcon is well above average, and now, their secondary will not only have a base in Josh Norman, but they may have one of the best sets of cornerbacks in the entire National Football League with Norman joining Chris Culliver and DeAngelo Hall.
Carolina general manager Dave Gettleman said Norman’s departure would not change his draft-day mantra of taking the best player available regardless of position.
Maybe Norman can help Washington actually beat a team with a winning record this season since they were unable to do that previous year.
Last season as a Panther, Norman had a total of 4 interceptions, two of which were pick-6’s. “It really did”, Norman told “Redskins Nation” on Friday night.
Last month, the 49ers failed to close deals with two other free agent cornerbacks, Sean Smith (Raiders) and Casey Hayward (San Diego Chargers).
The Washington Redskins look to be a big competitor for Norman’s talents, and we will have to wait and see how it all unfolds. The team recently took away the franchise tag on Norman and he became a free agent. Wednesday, that philosophy cost Norman $13.95 million in guaranteed money under a franchise tag contract offer he never signed. He intercepted four passes – two of them for touchdowns – scuffled with Panthers quarterback Cam Newton during training camp and later so infuriated New York Giants star wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. that he got him whistled for three unnecessary roughness penalties in a December 20 game between the two teams.
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The 28-year-old Norman was flown by private jet to Washington by the Redskins on Friday and, according to ESPN, he was accompanied by his mother and several family members.
