Media provides accurate assessment of Carolina Panthers rookie class

NFL.com gave accurate grades for the 2019 Carolina Panthers draft class.

After a full season of football, the grades are in for the 2018 rookie classes. The Carolina Panthers had a tremendous draft last season, and addressed many of the needs of the team in said draft. Sure, there were some risky situations, such as taking a receiver with the 22nd overall pick, but in the end class held a great glimpse of what the future could look like for the Carolina Panthers. Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com did a nice job of breaking down the class Saturday.

As is the case with most of these rookie rankings, he compared D.J. Moore to Calvin Ridley. Although he noted that Ridley have a more impressive season offensively, he did note that both receivers had tremendous rookie campaigns. In addition, he had great things to say about Donte Jackson. Jackson undoubtedly was a huge part of the Panthers defense and he should have a big season in 2019. If last season’s rookie numbers were any indication, Jackson should be in line for a big year.

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Overall, he gave the class a B+ ranking. I agree with that, as there were some misses as well as hits. Jermaine Carter is an interesting name to watch for in 2019. He started in one game, the season finale against the New Orleans Saints. In that contest, he recorded 13 tackles. Yes, I know the season finale should have a little bit of an asterisk next to it because both teams were resting their starters. However, 13 tackles is not a number to balk at. Overall during the course of the season, he would play in all 16 games.

In addition to Jackson, another player that should be in line for a big year in 2019 is tight end Ian Thomas. As soon as Greg Olsen went down, the team needed a player who could fill the void left at tight end. He played in 16 games, starting three of them and recorded 36 catches for 333 yards and two touchdowns. He proved that he could be a dependable weapon and the tight end of the future for the Panthers. The future looks very bright at the position.

Those are just some of names of the 2019 class. There are certainly a lot of pieces there that can help the Panthers both now and in the future. There are some players who showed they can make an impact now and some players we just do not know about.

Take Rashaan Gaulden for example. He played in 15 games, recording 17 tackles and a pass deflection. He definitely has high upside and I could see becoming a regular part of the Carolina Panthers secondary.

All in all, this class has a lot of potential. Marty Hurney he will have a lot of difficult decisions to make in the offseason. At the very least, he has a group of young players he can build around.

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