The Carolina Panthers have released franchise leading rusher DeAngelo Williams, the running back told a Charlotte television station.
Williams told WBTV in an exclusive interview Monday that he was cut by the Panthers last week during a meeting with coach Ron Rivera and general manager Dave Gettleman.
“We sat down, and he told me, ‘The fact of the matter is we’re going to have to release you,'” Williams told the station. “I said, you know, ‘Why?’ and he said, ‘Because we don’t run the ball enough. Just like you said back before the season started, we don’t run the ball enough to keep you and [Jonathan Stewart] both, so we’re going to release you.'”
Carolina will save $2 million in salary-cap space by designating Williams as a post-June 1 cut. Williams has one year left on his deal and is scheduled to count $6.3 million against the 2015 salary cap. According to the CBA, the Panthers have to wait until the new league year begins on March 10 to designate Williams a post-June 1 cut, two league sources said.
Gettleman wouldn’t go into details at the combine about his talk with Williams last week.
“I spoke to DeAngelo. We had a great conversation. It’s confidential. It’s between us,” Gettleman said. “DeAngelo had a tough season. He lost his mom, who he was very close to. Then came the season and he just couldn’t stay healthy. It was really hard for him.
“Then he broke his hand against Minnesota. That’s hard. Especially when you’re 32 [in April]. But he finished the season like a pro’s pro and like a man’s man. I really respect DeAngelo for the way he finished it.”
Asked directly if Williams would be a part of the team in 2015, Gettleman said, “I’m going to leave it where I just left it.”