NFL sources: Panthers free agent running back D’Onta Foreman expected to be hot commodity on open market

Running back is coming of a strong season and is expected to be one of the top backs available in free agency

Carolina Panthers running back D'Onta Foreman runs against the Atlanta Falcons during the first half of an NFL football game on Thursday, Nov. 10, 2022, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Rusty Jones) (Rusty Jones, Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

INDIANAPOLIS – D’Onta Foreman’s time has come.

The former University of Texas standout and Texas City native has emerged as a high priority for NFL teams and is expected to be a hot commodity in free agency because of his production, power and explosiveness, according to NFL sources.

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A 6-foot-1, 235-pound former Texas third-round draft pick and Doak Walker Award winner for the Longhorns, Foreman rushed for a career-high 914 yards and five touchdowns last season despite splitting time with Chuba Hubbard. He had a 165-yard rushing performance against the Detroit Lions

Foreman’s one-year, $2 million contract with the Panthers is expiring. League sources expect them to try to retain him,

Foreman, 26, rushed for 566 yards and three touchdowns and caught nine passes for 123 yards in nine games in 2021 for the Tennessee Titans.

Foreman was released by the Texans in 2019 one year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon. He rushed for 327 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie.’

Foreman, who has also played for the Indianapolis Colts before suffering a torn biceps and later the Atlanta Falcons, has continued to make strides in his career and in his life.

Foreman galvanized the Panthers’ running game after they traded Christian McCaffrey to the San Francisco 49ers.

Foreman has grieved the loss of his father, Darreck Foreman, and is a father himself of a girl named Nike and a son named Master.

Foreman rushed for 4,000 yards and 61 touchdowns in high school, playing with his twin brother, Armanti, there and for the Longhorns where D’Onta Foreman had a 2,000-yard rushing season.

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com