CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The NFL draft is a couple of days away and soon the Panthers will be on the clock.
The Panthers hold the sixth pick in the 2022 draft and don’t draft again until the fourth round.
At this point, it’s unclear what the Panthers will do. Even Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer admitted Tuesday in his pre-draft press conference that this year draft — more than previous years — is a mystery. Few people know what the first five teams ahead of Carolina will do.
“Usually you know who the first pick will be or have a very good idea,” he said. “It’s really up in the air.”
The Panthers have options, too. Do they draft at six or trade back? Fitterer said they have had discussions with other teams looking to move up. He said there are three to four teams who are serious about it.
But Carolina won’t trade back just to recoup a second- or third-round pick. Fitterer said there are “several players” on their draft board that they’d draft at six.
They even feel comfortable drafting one the quarterbacks, Fitterer said, before correcting himself.
“Well, actually a couple of them,” he said.
Fitterer was joined at the podium by assistant general manager Dan Morgan and college director of scouting Cole Spencer. This year’s draft was one of the more difficult ones to evaluate given the volume of players in it. Spencer said they evaluated close to 800 players in this draft class and have 156 prospects on their draft board.
“I think there’s a lot of depth throughout,” Morgan said. “O-line, I think that’s a pretty strong position, and that’s a need of ours. Quarterback, I think there’s some quarterbacks there we like.”
Are the Panthers looking to trade back?
Fitterer said the Panthers have talked to a number of teams looking to trade up.
However, at this point, it seems unlikely. Aside from the fact that the Panthers like a few players who could fall to them at No. 6, other teams, in trades, are looking for a 2023 pick from the Panthers.
But so far, Fitterer says he’s been unwilling to part ways with future draft capital.
“We want to protect those picks,” he said. “They are very valuable to us.”
The Panthers would likely take offensive tackles Evan Neal (Alabama) and Ikem Ekwonu (N.C. State) in a hurry, if either fell, and not think twice about it. For one, they both fill a need. Two, they are considered the top two tackles in this draft class and Day 1 starters.
Offensive tackle Charles Cross is another player they’d consider at six.
“It’s definitely something we’re going to look into,” Fitterer said of trading back. “But if there’s a good player at six, we’re going to stay there and pick the player.”
“If they’re gone, then we have opportunities.”
Fitterer’s philosophy has been to not trade back past the 16th pick because there is a drop-off in talent. He said this year’s draft class drops off around 20. However, he said he’d feel comfortable moving back “to the teens.”
Could the Panthers trade for a quarterback?
Fitterer maintained that the Panthers needed consistent play from their quarterback room and have voiced that with quarterback Sam Darnold.
He said he sat down with Darnold on Monday and told him that they would add to the room, and that his spot was an open competition.
While drafting a quarterback is a possibility, Fitterer said they could also trade for a veteran. He declined to speak specifically about any particular quarterbacks, citing league rules prohibiting that.
At this point, only two veterans quarterbacks appeal to them: San Francisco’s Jimmy Garoppolo and Cleveland’s Baker Mayfield, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.
But if the Panthers do trade for one, it would likely be after the draft.
In weighing whether to trade for a quarterback or draft one, Fitterer said you have to ask yourself multiple questions. One question, he said, is: “Why are some quarterbacks available that are out on the market? You have to ask yourself that.”
Who breaks the tie on draft decisions?
Sometimes draft rooms can get tense with varying opinions on who they should draft.
So who would break a tie if there was a disagreement? Fitterer joked they’d put everyone in a corner and let them fight it out.
Morgan insists they’ve had a collaborative view on everything and are aligned with where they are going.
Brian Burns fifth-year option
Fitterer said while they haven’t officially picked up the fifth-year option on defensive end Brian Burns’ contract, that is the plan. Burns is entering his fourth season with the Panthers.
Burns made his first Pro Bowl this past season after recording 50 tackles and nine sacks in 2021. Because he made the Pro Bowl, the fifth-year option is projected to be $16.01 million.
That number won’t go up until the 2023 season, though. His 2022 salary cap number is $4.3 million.
“We have hopes of extending him beyond that,” Fitterer added.
