"What are we doing in the draft" 2022 edition.

[LinvilleGorge]

50 minutes ago, Panthera onca said:

I'm no fan of Jimmy G but he is universally held in much higher regard in league circles than Sammy D. 

In our system they'll probably look like the same guy. People overlook the reality that Jimmy G has a lot of ugly force something up turnovers too. That issue would only be magnified here 

[Varking]

Drafting a lineman and getting Baker would be an upgrade. 

Edited April 18, 2022 by Varking

[Proudiddy]

Appreciate it, as always, Verge!  

My take after synthesizing it:

I dont like the tidbit about Willis at all.  IMO, he is the most dynamic QB in this class with the highest ceiling.  I see a bit of Lamar or Russ in him, if he can develop further...  and if that is indeed what he becomes, or at least day like a 10 year, quality starter in the league, and we passed him up because Rhule didn't want a guy he had to wait on because his ass is on fire, then that fuging sucks.  I honestly hope he has very little input on the pick.  Leave it to the guys with job security like Fitt and Morgan and folks whose job is to build the team, not save Rhule's job.  It also irks me because, despite the great acquisitions we've made this offseason, I really feel Rhule has to make the playoffs at minimum to save his job - which I think is a huge ask...  so, that guy and his cronies shouldn't be having the biggest input on these picks.

I would love the tackle from NC St.  I also really do like Corral in a trade down scenario...  the dude has some Jake to him in terms of attitude, but with more athleticism.  But man, reading how this is looking, it just seems we have a knack for falling one spot right out of where we need to be in the draft.  I love Horn, but had we been one spot higher last year, we could've had Sewell, iirc.  And it seems like that has been the case in several drafts for that matter.

[MHS831]

great timing, Verge.  the next 10 days are going to be news starved.  This caused me to think more about OTs--giving me more hope that we do not go QB. 

I still think they will trade back if given that option--unless Ikwonu or Neal is there.

[jfo89]

@Verge a couple questions

1. Which QB is Pittsburg targeting? If it’s Willis, and the scouting community is pretty sure that the Panthers will not be taking him, then why jump them? Or maybe their target is Pickett?

2. who do you think the Saints would be moving up for? And how likely is it that they trade up? I could see trading up for one of the tackles, or Corral.

3. Which teams could be potential trade partners for the Panthers?

[Mr. Scot]

9 minutes ago, Proudiddy said:

I dont like the tidbit about Willis at all.  IMO, he is the most dynamic QB in this class with the highest ceiling.  I see a bit of Lamar or Russ in him, if he can develop further...  

Couple of things I'd point out here...

There's a real tendency among big Newton fans to take a look at any halfway decent athletic quarterbacks coming out in the draft and excitedly exclaim, "It's Cam! He's come back to us!".

Yeah...except it isn't, and he hasn't. And sometimes I really think people have forgotten just how unique Newton actually was.

The other thing I see a lot of is people looking at those athletic guys and saying "This is how we can finally get Cam Newton 2.0".

To that, I'd say that while some fans are looking for Newton Part Deux, I haven't really seen any definitive indication that the Panthers are.

So if you fall into either of these mindsets, you might have a pretty good chance of being disappointed.

[top dawg]

I like the news about Corral. I love thee news about not selling the farm for Garropolo or Mayfield. If what you say is true, I'm content. Now, all I have to do is wait and see how next Thursday falls.

[ForJimmy]

1 hour ago, Varking said:

Drafting a lineman and getting Baker would be an upgrade. 

IF Baker comes cheap and they eat a chunk of his salary, this is the best scenario.  Upgrades the QB from bottom of the league to mid-level with some potential to be better.  Upgrades the LT and OL all together as a whole making our QB play better.  

[ncfan]

@Verge
 

Is there any chance that the Browns and 49ers could hold out on trading those QBs to us for a lower offer than they want.  And drag this at least into the preseason, holding out hope for a playoff caliber team losing a QB to injury and get a better offer then.  Ala Sam Bradford.

[SOJA]

great post as always OP. 

I completely agree with everything I've read/heard reported. 

The last couple of days I've convinced myself that the Panthers are kind of screwed in terms of a trade down. Why? Exactly as you alluded to NYG at #5 are prime trade down candidates Anyone who wants a LT can easily jump up to that spot and take one before us and the Giants won't lose hardly any capital as they already have the #7 pick as well. 

Must be nice to have two top ten picks. 

The way I see the draft going right now:

1 Jax- Hutchinson

2 Det- Walker 

3 Hou- Neal 

4 NYJ- Gardner

5 NYG- Ickey

6- Cross

 

The real key in all of this is that the Jets take a defensive player, doesn't matter who but if they take Ickey I think the Giants take Cross then the Panthers are really fuged. 

 

[Ryano1974]

2 hours ago, Verge said:

Hi again! Time for another one of these. This is the only type of statement I will make on the draft and I'll answer questions in here so I don't get accused of "throwing junk at the wall" again . So what are we doing in the draft? What is the plan going in? This year seems a little more obvious than last year but we can still walk through it based on information I have gotten over the last few months, and I think I have been fairly consistent with that and not much has changed. 

 

Option 1 (Ideal): 

Ideally, one of these two tackles will land at 6 and Carolina will happily run the card up and be set at left tackle for the next decade. They want to fix that position and these are the top rated guys on their board. They would not entertain trade talks if these two were there. 

 

Option 2: 

Charles Cross is their third graded tackle, they will be happy to have them and would still select him at 6. However, I think they would be more open to trade talks if it was just Cross on the board. Likely would be the pick if he was there, but wiggle room if a desperate team wants the slot for whatever reason (I'll explain the more later) 

Option 3: 


Here is where things get a little unpredictable. Obviously if they do manage a trade down with two or three of the tackles being off the board it would be a little hard to predict the target because we would have to know how far down they go. However, a few targets I know they have their eyes on with first round grades are: 
Matt Corral 
Kenny Pickett 
Trevor Penning 
Cole Strange 

Ultimately I think they would go QB with this pick, and I think they would hope Corral was the guy that made it to them, as he fits what McAdoo's offense best and has a certain grit about him that fits whatever culture they are tying to conjure up. 

 

 

"But Verge! What about Malik Willis?"
Our scouts definitely like him, I just think there is a certain feeling in the building that they are not the right team to develop him, nor can they afford to sit and wait for him to get where he needs to be. Rhule's job is on the line. 

"But Verge! Who will be our QB if we take a tackle?"
I have maintained after the Watson failure that Jimmy G is our preferred option. It comes down to him and Baker Mayfield, whichever teams bends first on taking on part of their contract or outright cutting them. We will not be giving a draft haul for either one, and we will not be starting Sam Darnold in 2022. 


One of the more complicated things about a trade down that people have been talking about wanting to do, is that the Panthers have put themselves in a precarious position by selling themselves as buyers of this QB class as well as not hiding their intent on liking the tackles. Teams want to move AHEAD of the Panthers to nab a tackle/quarterback, and the Giants are willing movers out of that 5th spot. Teams like New Orleans, Pittsburgh, and LA are looking to move ahead of us and nab one of those tackles or quarterbacks (I think, I don't officially know for NO) and put us in a position where a team trading up with us is not an attractive option. 


So there is what I know in regards to our draft. Feel free to fire down some questions at me and I will be more than happy to answer with whatever information I have.

Verge, in the event that Hutch, Walker, and the top 3 tackles go too 5, and we are unable to trade down, who do you feel we would select at 6? 

[Krovvy]

So, basically everyone's mock draft.

[Kentucky Panther]

Sounds fantastic. And would be a refreshing step in the right direction. Let’s get us a tackle. 

[Bronn]

From what I’ve gathered so far, from people I trust to know, is:

We have two tackles we would take at 6 if they are there, but will hear any and all offers to move down a bit. We like a lot of mid round OL guys too.

We don’t want to take a QB at 6.

We already have two potential trade partners for #6 depending on how the first five picks play out.

There are a couple players we could trade to acquire during the draft, none of which are QBs, and there are still players of our own that we’d move.

One real goal is to recoup at least one pick in the second and third rounds, and possibly multiple in each. We see a lot of role players in the 40-80 range.