Carolina Panthers claim former Chiefs OL Dillon Gordon

The Kansas City Chiefs cleared one name from the tough competition along the offensive line with the release of Dillon Gordon.

The development of Dillon Gordon into an offensive lineman will have to continue somewhere else now that the Kansas City Chiefs have made their decision to release him. Shortly after his release, he was claimed by the Carolina Panthers.

Gordon came to Chiefs as a late-season signing in the 2017 season to the practice squad, the sort of late season grab general managers use to set up the next offseason’s batch of prospect. The Giants had already poached Damien Mama from the Chiefs practice squad, so the team replaced him with Gordon, who intrigued Brett Veach and his staff enough to keep him around for the last year-and-a-half given his potential to shift from college tight end to pro offensive tackle.

The Philadelphia Eagles started the experiment after signing Gordon to a rookie free agent deal after Gordon went undrafted. At that point, Gordon was a blocking tight end for LSU with a torn Achilles, the worst possible timing for a player given that he could not showcase at the NFL Combine or LSU pro day.

Unfortunately an injury once again came at the wrong time for Gordon as he needed shoulder surgery last year and would miss the 2018 season. The Chiefs then decided to move on the following offseason.

The Panthers will now hope they can help Gordon make the leap as a developmental tackle. It’s a solid bet this time of year. Here’s hoping Gordon does well in his third NFL stop.