No seat in the NFL is hotter than that of Matt Rhule’s at the top of the Carolina Panthers organization. His buns are so toasty, in fact, that he might even have to trade up in the upcoming 2022 NFL draft.
With discouraging whiffs on back-to-back projects in Teddy Bridgewater and Sam Darnold, Rhule is seemingly one more strike away at the quarterback position from becoming the D.J. Jazzy Jeff to owner David Tepper’s Uncle Phil. So is a bold move about to be born and raised?
Well, it could be—as the draft’s most potent prize under center is growing more and more in demand by the week. That prize is Liberty University’s Malik Willis, who NFL.com draft analyst Chad Reuter has Carolina securing at the No. 3 overall slot in his latest mock draft.
“Panthers head coach Matt Rhule’s search for a QB1 continues and, in this scenario, Carolina trades up for the playmaking Willis despite sending valuable draft picks to the Jets for Sam Darnold a year ago,” he writes.
Now, what’s the price? Reuter believes it’ll take the Panthers’ sixth overall pick, their 2023 first-rounder and a fourth-rounder to squeeze up with the Houston Texans—who seem fine enough with Davis Mills at the moment.
That, of course, would be quite the contrast from what the earlier perception on Willis’ standing was. Even as little as two weeks back, the notion of drafting the 22-year-old as high up as No. 6—let alone selling out for him at No. 3—would have definitely gotten a bunch of strange looks.
But now, with an impressive Senior Bowl showing in the bag and the quarterback market still quite cloudy, Willis is drawing some interested eyes himself. How could he not to this point?
In the right situation, his dual-threat abilities—the tremendous arm strength and explosiveness on the ground among them—could be molded into one of the game’s most dangerous presences at the position. Willis’ potency falls right into line with the fresh wave of promising passers led by talents such as Josh Allen, Kyler Murray and Justin Herbert.
And it’s that very ceiling, which may not ultimately exist, that’ll have multiple front offices looking to jump the Panthers for come April. The Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos, Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles—just to name a few—possess the need and resources to possibly pounce ahead.
Until then, however, there’s still a considerable amount of work to be done. Will we still be talking about Willis’ soaring stock after the combine, his pro day and team visits? (Spoiler: Probably, yeah.)
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