Panthers 2021 Draft: 5 best picks at No. 8 overall of all-time

The Carolina Panthers have the 8th pick in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Here are the five best players ever drafted at that spot.

The debates about what the Carolina Panthers should do with the No. 8 overall selection in this year’s draft will be endless. There are a lot of holes in the roster that need to be filled and a treasure chest of interesting prospects at several key positions that could really help the roster become a postseason challenger as soon as next season if the right picks are made.

Carolina could potentially select their next franchise quarterback, offensive lineman, tight end, linebacker, or defensive back with their first-round pick. They need to get these selections right – which they managed to do well overall in the 2020 NFL Draft – with the coaching staff working at the Senior Bowl this week another strong factor that shouldn’t be overlooked during the evaluation process.

The bottom line is, Matt Rhule and new general manager Scott Fitterer will certainly have their work cut out for them.

There are groups of Panthers fans that feel the team cannot afford to pass on a signal-caller of the future in the first round thanks to Teddy Bridgewater’s struggles under center. However, history shows there have been several non-quarterbacks drafted with the eighth overall pick that have gone on to have incredible careers.

With that in mind, we delved deep into the history books and picked out the five best players that have been taken with the selection Carolina has in the 2021 NFL Draft.