4 pros and cons to the Panthers drafting Trey Lance in 2021
By Dean Jones
The Carolina Panthers might be on the lookout for a new quarterback this offseason, but could they gamble on a prospect like Trey Lance?
It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that Teddy Bridgewater is a man under pressure. The Carolina Panthers gambled heavily on bringing him to the organization in preference of Cam Newton, who was unceremoniously released at a time when there were few opportunities to start elsewhere and it hasn’t gone according to plan so far.
Bridgewater didn’t do enough – especially down the stretch – to convince people he is the man to lead Carolina moving forward. This might result in the Panthers making a big splash for someone like Deshaun Watson or using their No. 8 overall selection on a potential franchise signal-caller of the future.
Considering that the likes of Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields, and Zach Wilson could be gone by the time Carolina is on the clock, they might consider taking a significant gamble on North Dakota State standout Trey Lance.
This appears to be a feast or famine prospect on the face of it, which could be an altering move for good or bad if the Panthers choose to go in this particular direction.
Let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of the Panthers taking Lance with their first-rounder in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Pro No. 1
High reward pick for the Carolina Panthers
There are obvious risks when it comes to Trey Lance.
But the reward could be substantial.
This is a player who has all the tools need to make a real go of things at the next level. One could pick apart a couple of things which we will discuss later. However, at the end of the day, every quarterback prospect not named Trevor Lawrence in this draft comes with some concerns regarding their transition to the pros.
New general manager Scott Fitterer will be aiming to make a statement early in his tenure. If he picks Lance and it pays off, it would stand both him and the Panthers in tremendously good stead moving forward.