Perfect Picks: Carolina Panthers
With the NFL Draft approaching we will be looking at each team and evaluating where they need to improve. In this particular series we will run a seven round mock using the Pro Football Network Mock Draft Simulator and find the ‘Perfect Picks’ for each franchise.
We will highlight four players that could help each team. This will feature picks 1 and 2, a mid round gem and a late round sleeper.
Round 1 - Malik Willis, QB, Liberty
The game of musical chairs between QBs and NFL teams is nearing an end. For the Panthers, they are the chair yet to be sat in. Their options are running out rapidly. I don’t like selecting one of these QBs so early but Matt Rhule simply has to roll the dice and buy some time. Willis has the high ceiling for a franchise owner to buy into but this feels like last chance saloon for Rhule. Perhaps they move back and recoup some picks in the next two rounds but at this point he can’t avoid QB until round 4 and Willis has the mobility and big arm to mould into an NFL starter.
Round 4 - Rasheed Walker, OT, Penn State
The other knock on effect of having a dearth of picks is that the Panthers remain in need of a left tackle and finding a starter in the middle of the draft feels unlikely. Walker has all the hallmarks of an NFL left tackle but the tape is a rollercoaster. He shows some bite in the run game but is caught off balance too often when pass blocking. That was highlighted all too well in big matchups against Michigan and Ohio State. Perhaps Cam Erving can be the stop gap while the Panthers develop Walker and make the most of his inherent traits.
Mid Round Gem - Alex Wright, Edge, UAB
Wright shares some similarities to former teammate Jordan Smith who was drafted in the fourth round by the Jaguars. Namely they both have incredible length with 6’7 frames. That could be something that appeals to the Panthers considering their recent history drafting Brian Burns and Yetur Gross-Matos. Wright is a bit more thickly built and not as twitchy but his 51 total pressures, including five sacks, show the progress he made as a senior. He would be a nice mid-round addition to someone’s pass rush rotation.
Late Round Sleeper - Decobie Durant, CB, South Carolina State
Decobie Durant’s 4.38 40-yard dash time turned heads in Indy and his ball-hawking film backs it up. Even though he has played against lesser competititon his 10 career interceptions and 25 pass break ups shows eye-popping production. Two of those INTs came this year against not-so-small school Clemson. Durant is a touch undersized but has the chance to backup the re-signed Donte Jackson and last year’s first round pick Jaycee Horn if he stayed in state with the Panthers.
Draft In Full:
6. Malik Willis, QB, Liberty
137. Rasheed Walker, OT, Penn State
144. Alex Wright, Edge, UAB
149. Danny Gray, WR, SMU
199. Justin Shaffer, OG, Georgia
242. Decobie Durant, CB, SCSU
