Landon Johnson agrees with Carolina

Landon Johnson has agreed to terms on a three-year contract with the Carolina Panthers, agent Andy Simms told The Enquirer this morning. The Bengals did make an attempt to match the deal.

The deal is believed to be worth a little more than $3 million per season and a total of around $10 million.

Johnson visited Carolina in the past few days.

Johnson, the Bengals' second of two third-round draft picks in 2004, led the team in tackles three of the past four seasons. He played in all 64 regular games and the lone playoff game following the 2005 season. Johnson served as the personal protector on the punt team and called signals on that unit.

Johnson is the third starter from the 2007 Bengals defense to leave via free agency. Last Friday, starting free safety Madieu Williams signed a six-year contract with the Minnesota Vikings. And on Saturday defensive end Justin Smith signed a $45 million deal with the San Francisco 49ers.

The Bengals did re-sign starting weak-side linebacker Dhani Jones earlier this week.

Johnson is in a position to challenge Na'il Diggs for the starting job at weak-side linebacker with the Panthers. Their other two starting linebackers are former Carolina first-round picks Thomas Davis and Jon Beason, both players the Bengals liked coming out of college.

The other third-round pick in 2004, linebacker Caleb Miller, also is an unrestricted free agent. The Bengals are not believed to be interested in bringing him back. Miller is headed to Seattle for a visit with the Seahawks.

Williams was one of the two second-round picks the Bengals had in 2004. The top second-round pick, cornerback Keiwan Ratliff, was released early in the 2007 season. The first-round pick from 2004, running back Chris Perry, has played only one healthy season in four and did not play at all last year because he was rehabbing from ankle and shin injuries sustained in the 2006 game at Cleveland.