Panthers 2021 Draft: Just how good is Florida TE Kyle Pitts?
By Dean Jones
Florida’s tight end Kyle Pitts has the potential to be great, but could the Carolina Panthers take him at No. 8 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft?
The upcoming NFL Draft is a critical one for the Carolina Panthers. They have much work to do in order to make the necessary strides en route to becoming a Super Bowl challenger once again and with little in the way of financial resources available due to the salary-cap decreasing, it makes picking the right college recruits even more important this offseason.
Head coach Matt Rhule will be aided during the assessment process by new general manager Scott Fitterer, who has a strong reputation from a scouting point of view from his time with the Seattle Seahawks. Both figures are currently examining some top prospects first-hand at the 2021 Senior Bowl, which is sure to provide some invaluable information ahead of the all-important draft weekend.
One player who isn’t part of the event in Mobile, Alabama, but comes with some exceptional promise is Kyle Pitts.
The Florida standout is comfortably the best tight end in this year’s class and has the scope to be the NFL’s next great pass-catching player at the position providing his transition to the pros is a smooth one.
The Carolina Panthers have a need at TE.
This is an area of considerable need for the Panthers. Greg Olsen parted ways with the organization during the free agency period last year and has subsequently retired and to say Ian Thomas failed to secure the No. 1 role long-term would be something of an understatement.
This leaves Carolina with no other alternative than to explore different options this offseason. Whether this comes in free agency or the draft remains to be seen, but not having a reliable presence across the middle is something that really hurt the Panthers at critical moments during the campaign.