PANTHERS FINAL MOCK DRAFT ROUNDUP: SHOULD CAROLINA TRADE NO. 33 OVERALL?
The Carolina Panthers do not own a first-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft after trading the selection to Chicago last offseason as part of the deal that landed them the 2023 No. 1 overall pick — which wound up being quarterback Bryce Young.
So, despite finishing last season with a league-worst 2-15 record, the Panthers aren't scheduled to make their first draft pick until the beginning of Day 2 at No. 33 overall.
The first pick of the second round is normally a coveted selection, but will Carolina stay put and take a player there or try and trade back to accrue more picks to bolster the roster? Could they potentially even trade up into the 1st round?
With just one day remaining until the start of the 2024 NFL Draft, which kicks off from Detroit at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday night, here's a look at what various draft experts have the Panthers doing with their first selection at the top of the second round.
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Stay put?
Carolina should receive a lot of phone calls from interested teams about No. 33, especially if a player unexpectedly falls out of the first round, but many people believe the Panthers will make that pick if their preferred prospect falls to them.
Multiple experts project Carolina to take a receiver at No. 33 overall if they do stay put. Dane Brugler and a few others have mocked Georgia pass-catcher Ladd McConkey at the spot, while others have Xavier Legette — who played collegiately down the road at South Carolina — as the team's choice.
Either player would add a bit of dynamism to the Panthers' pass offense, which ranked last in the NFL in 2023. McConkey didn't have the best statistical profile in college, catching just 30 passes for 478 yards and two touchdowns as a junior last season, but he has been praised as a technical route-runner who excels at finding open pockets of space in the defense.
Legette, meanwhile, recently told reporters that Carolina promised to take him at No. 33 if he is still available. Whether or not the Panthers will keep their word there is up for debate, but the former Gamecock would be a welcome addition to the WR room.
The 6-foot-3, 225-pound receiver had by far his best collegiate season in 2023, catching 71 passes for 1,255 yards and seven touchdowns.
Of course, receiver isn't Carolina's only need in this draft, and it's not the only position experts mocked to the Panthers with No. 33 overall.
In a two-round mock, NFL Trade Rumors projected Alabama CB Kool-Aid McKinistry to go to Carolina with the top pick in the second round. McKinistry was mocked by some as a top-10 pick before this past college football season, but the improvement of Terrion Arnold at the other corner spot overshadowed his impact for the Crimson Tide.
Jordan Reid of ESPN has the Panthers selecting an offensive lineman at No. 33 — Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson. Carolina went a long way toward repairing their offensive line with the free agent signings of guards Robert Hunt and Damien Lewis, but any extra help protecting Young would definitely be a welcome addition.
Powers ranks 27th overall on Pro Football Focus' 2024 Big Board after leading all Divison-I centers with an 84.5 total grade in 2023. He also has the versatility to play both center and guard.
Trade back?
What might make the most sense for the Panthers, who have holes all over their roster, is to trade the No. 33 overall pick and slide back to a later spot on Day 2. Carolina does own No. 39 overall after trading Brian Burns to the Giants earlier this offseason, so there's a chance whomever the team might have wanted at the start of the round could still be there at that selection.
Joe Person, who covers the Panthers for The Athletic, recently projected Carolina to trade No. 33 and No. 142 overall to New England in exchange for pick No. 34, pick No. 103 and a 2025 seventh.
Person then had Carolina selecting Legette at No. 34, Texas A&M linebacker Edgerrin Cooper at No. 39 and using the fourth they picked up to later take Penn State tight end Theo Johnson.
ESPN experts Mel Kiper and Field Yates have the Panthers trading No. 33 to the Rams for No. 52, No. 83 and a third-rounder in 2025. The pair then projected McConkey to land with Carolina at No. 39, while the 52nd pick wound up being Michigan CB Mike Sainristil.
Finally, PFF has Carolina trading No. 33 to the New York Giants for No. 47 and No. 107 overall. They then projected the Panthers to take Alabama EDGE Chris Braswell at No. 39 and Georgia CB Kamari Lassiter at No. 47.
The Panthers desperately need another pass-rusher after trading Burns to New York and losing Frankie Luvu in free agency. The top player on Carolina's roster right now in terms of 2023 sacks is Jadeveon Clowney, who had 9.5 with the Ravens last season. Braswell had eight sacks and three forced fumbles while playing with the Crimson Tide in 2023.
Trade up?
While it is probably the unlikeliest scenario of the three, some experts have Carolina getting super aggressive and trading No. 33 overall to move up into the first round. In his latest mock, R.J. White of CBS Sports had the Panthers trading No. 33 and No. 101 to Detroit to move up four picks to No. 29. He then had Carolina taking Texas receiver Adonai Mitchell with the selection.
Mitchell caught 55 passes for 845 yards and 11 touchdowns for the Longhorns last season, but he has been overshadowed in the draft process by teammate Xavier Worthy, who broke the record for the fastest 40-yard dash at the NFL combine with a time of 4.21 seconds.
Mitchell is built differently than Worthy at 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds. PFF ranks him as the No. 22 overall prospect on their big board, projecting him to be a tough matchup for smaller corners, especially in the red zone.
Other receiver prospects who could be available in the late 20s are LSU's Brian Thomas, Oregon's Troy Franklin or Florida State's Keon Coleman.
Wherever Carolina makes its first selection, the Panthers will likely field all calls as they try and bolster their roster following a harrowing 2023 campaign.
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