Carolina Panthers Roundtable: 2026 NFL Draft Edition
The SportCLT team came together for some final NFL Draft predictions.
The NFL Draft has arrived, and the SportCLT team has put together a roundtable discussion to get some final thoughts about before the event takes place this evening.
Be sure to tune into SportCLT’s live draft show at 8 PM ET tonight! We will have a variety of guests and provide analysis of each pick in real time. You can catch the show on YouTube and Twitter.
Okay, let’s dive in:
What's your confidence level (1-10) in Panthers GM Dan Morgan, specifically for the 2026 NFL Draft?
Dylan Jackson (DJ): 7. That 2024 class was rough, but I think the front office learned from it. 2025 was especially great and will be difficult to replicate without a top-10 pick (and weaker draft class), but I think I trust GM Dan Morgan to add an impact player or two and make good moves on the margins.
Jacob Lequire (JL): 6. I really like what Morgan was able to accomplish with the 2025 draft class. Adding the offensive rookie of the year, two ascending edge defenders, and good depth was big for Carolina last season. However, the 2024 draft class is looking like a wash at this point. Jalen Coker is the best player from that group and he wasn't technically a draft pick. Hopefully 2026 can look more like the 2025 class.
Steve Sears (SS): 8. I think Morgan & Co. know exactly where our roster problems lie. There’s no “the answer may be on the roster” lines getting thrown around, and I love that. They are also coming off a really productive 2025 draft that produced the rookie of the year and 5 other rookies who all contributed in some way. They’ve earned a lot of trust.
Akil Guruparan (AG): 8. He nailed the 2025 draft in terms of both trade value and prospect evaluation and did so in a way that seems sustainable - but last year was a much better draft than this one, and I don't completely know if last year's aggressive approach would work the same way with this draft. I'm also curious about how he will manage the Panthers' offensive line situation, which to me is a lot more dire than it's been talked about.
What is the position that you feel most confident will be addressed by the Carolina Panthers within the first three rounds of the NFL Draft?
DJ: Wide Receiver. While I'm not sold on a receiver being the first-round pick, Carolina has done a ton of work on receivers in the pre-draft process on players projected to go in the first three rounds. I think it will be a position they address early.
JL: Offensive Line. All the buzz is about receiver or tight end, but it's very difficult to find true high end starters along the offensive line in later rounds. Offensive line is a larger need for this team than people realize.
SS: Offensive tackle. They just have to add some top 100 talent to the o-line room. There’s already a lot of money pumped into that group and with Ickey Ekwonu’s injury and Taylor Moton’s future beyond this year an uncertainty, Carolina needs to add some youth to the group to put themselves in a position to be ready for a shuffle.
AG: Linebacker. Devin Lloyd was successful last year as a supercharged sidekick to Foye Oluokun rather than as a green-dot, quarterback-of-the-defense type of player. I don't really think the Panthers are going to pay him to be a player he wasn't last year, and that's going to mean pairing him with somebody they believe can be a three-down green-dot guy. I'm not sure that Trevin Wallace or Claudin Cherelus are that right now, and there are quite a few Day 2 candidates who look the part.
Name one player commonly connected to the Panthers at 19 that you DO NOT think will be the pick.
DJ: Kenyon Sadiq. It seems like every mock draft out there has the Panthers taking Sadiq, and I just don't think the odds of that happening are very high. Carolina has done a lot of work on tight ends, but more-so on guys projected to go on Day Two. It feels like many project Sadiq to Carolina out of convenience more than anything else. I could be wrong, but I think the odds are much less likely than what's implied by just scrolling through mock drafts released over the past month.
JL: Kenyon Sadiq. The most commonly-mocked player to Carolina actually doesn't make a ton of sense. Sadiq is an athletic freak but lacks any real form of production and was outpaced by many other receiving options on the Oregon roster late in the season. I don't think the analytically-minded part of the front office would be willing to sign off on an unproductive tight end over a receiver, offensive lineman, or defensive back.
SS: Dillon Thienemen. I just don’t buy it but really it depends what OTs & WRs are on the board. I like the player, but safety’s always slip. There’s also now this possibility that he just may not even be there. Again, not buying it. I also just think that due to positional value, at 19, Carolina will look somewhere else before they look at Thienemen at safety.
AG: Omar Cooper, Jr. I think it's well within the realm of possibility that the Panthers take another receiver on Day 1, but I can't imagine it'll be somebody who played nearly all their college snaps from the slot. Given how much the Panthers like putting the guys they already have in the slot, and how much they run multiple tight-end sets, I think they're going to want a guy with more lineup versatility. I'd expect KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston (though I'd be unhappy with him) to be much higher on their board.
Who is your favorite day two prospect for the Carolina Panthers?
DJ: Anthony Hill, LB, Texas. Hill is an electric linebacker with three full years of production at Texas. He was an early breakout, has tons of athleticism and length, and provides value in a a variety of ways. I think taking Hill would really nicely round out the linebacker room for the Panthers.
JL: Caleb Banks, DL, Florida. He's only a Day 2 guy for me due to the nagging foot injuries he's sustained. Banks is the most explosive defensive line prospect in this class by a wide margin, and could be worth a look in Round 2 if Carolina is good with his medicals.
SS: Keionte Scott, DB, Miami. I would really for Carolina to add some physicality to the nickel spot (very important these days) and Scott brings just that. He popped every time I watched Miami and is a near perfect fit alongside Jaycee Horn & Mike Jack.
AG: Max Klare. I think he's the most dynamic route-running tight end in the draft and would add a dimension to the Panthers' pass-catchers that they're sorely lacking. Having a tight end like him who could open up the middle of the field and command attention at the second level would free up the Panthers' outside receivers as well and give Bryce Young the kind of wide-open field that he's been missing for three years.
Do you find it likely the Panthers trade out of pick No. 19, either up or down?
DJ: I'll put it this way: I think the likelihood of a trade is greater than any single player at 19 overall. I think there's a little better than a 1-in-3 chance the Panthers make some sort of trade on night one. Dan Morgan has only made one pick in the top-100 that wasn't acquired via a draft-day trade, and it was Tetairoa McMillan at No. 8 in 2025. I expect the Panthers to evaluate all options to extract the maximum possible value out of their draft pick.
JL: Yes, I think it's actually more likely than not that Carolina makes a trade on Night 1. Dan Morgan has traded to acquire and select 5 of the 6 Top 100 draft picks throughout his tenure as general manager. The lack of real blue chip talent outside of the top 6-7 players could prompt a move back to acquire future picks.
SS: Yes, I think if they have a dance partner, they would not hesitate to move down.
AG: I don't think they trade up. The amount that they'd need to give up to move up to where you'd get one of the blue-chip guys in this draft is too much for where this team is in the building process. I'm not so sure they trade down, either, just because I'm not sure that you can be sure that any of the guys you might take at 19 would still be there at a later pick if they trade down more than 4 spots or so.
Who is your favorite first-round target for the Carolina Panthers?
DJ: KC Concepcion. The Panthers desperately need a dynamic, explosive element in their offense. Everything has felt so condensed over the past three seasons, and adding a player like Concepcion makes everyone's job easier on offense. He stretches the field, makes the most of his yards after the catch, and regularly beats both man and zone coverage. Concepcion is my WR2 in this class only after Carnell Tate. I think he's THAT talented.
JL: Monroe Freeling. I really believe the offensive line is the biggest issue facing Carolina at this point in their roster construction. Not only does this unit add 2 new starters this season, but the unit is the most expensive across the entire NFL. Despite this high budget, the group actually performed quite poorly when it comes to pass protection. Carolina needs to get younger, cheaper, and better, particularly at the tackle spots. I think Freeling has the best chance at becoming a plus starter at left tackle, a spot that hasn't been above average in pass protection even with Ickey Ekwonu healthy.
SS: Could honestly go a lot of different ways here and it’s really hard to pick ONE. But I gotta stick with the board here and go Jordyn Tyson. I just think he is just way too talented a player to pass on. The injuries are spooky but I think Carolina has the infrastructure in place to deal with any hurdles and hopefully nfl training can strengthen his body.
AG: Monroe Freeling. I love his movement skills and hand strength and placement, it makes him a brick wall against speed and power rushers. The Panthers are facing long-term questions at both the left and right tackle positions and I think Freeling is the perfect guy to answer either one of them because he's played both sides in college. I also think his ceiling is even higher than it might seem because Georgia employs Stacy Searels as their OL coach, and with a quality NFL position coach instead, the sky is the limit.
Predict what the Panthers will do on Thursday night.
DJ: If I had to guess, I think the Panthers take Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman if he's available at 19. If not (and I don't think he will be), I think they will either move down a few spots via trade or take a receiver (either KC Concepcion or Omar Cooper).
JL: Trade back into the 20s, draft a receiver. As stated above, I think Carolina will ultimately be tempted by a trade to move back into the 20s to select one of the many receivers they brought in for visits. Indiana's Omar Cooper Jr. and local product KC Concepcion make sense if Carolina trades back, and I think that will ultimately be the direction the team goes.
SS: I think Carolina picks a player for the trenches. Again I think draft investment in the o-line is a must and picking and the loss of A’shawn Robinson left a hole on the d-line. If the opportunity to trade down presents itself, I also think that happens.
AG: I think they'll take Dillon Thieneman. It became apparent down the stretch last season that the defensive strength of this team is on the back end. The Panthers have two excellent cornerbacks and an enforcer of a safety in Tre'Von Moehrig. I think Dan Morgan will want to try and rebuild the Legion of Boom he was in Seattle to help create, and Thieneman could be his Earl Thomas.