Only four teams remain in the Super Bowl race. The Carolina Panthers are others have their sights firmly set on the recruitment process and what they can do to enhance their prospects of gaining similar success in the coming years.
Dan Morgan had a tough job on his hands during his first year as general manager. This was a franchise down on their luck and rooted as the league's laughingstock. It took time and not everything was perfect, but the Panthers are on sounder footing at long last.
There is also stability for the first time in David Tepper's ownership. The Panthers are not frantically trying to find prominent appointments in the hiring cycle. The billionaire hedge fund manager is bullish about the future and is giving Morgan's project time. Bryce Young's emergence into a productive quarterback lends further weight to the positivity.
Carolina is in a better position for sustainable success. They could be more active in free agency if those in power free up enough spare financial resources. Morgan also has nine draft selections at his disposal to find immediate difference-makers and depth pieces from the college ranks.
It was a mixed bag from Morgan's first draft class. Most got decent playing time during their early transition, although they remain a work in progress. This experience should serve them well, but there is an urgency to maximize the rich assets at their disposal this spring.
Carolina Panthers need a strong 2025 NFL Draft to boost their hopes next season
With bowl games upcoming, the evaluation process is in full swing. Morgan and his staff will be running the rule over hundreds of prospects before narrowing down his shortlist. After that, it's a case of playing the draft board effectively and finding the players capable of fitting into the team's improving culture.
Carolina's needs look pretty obvious right now. They'll alter heading into the draft depending on any free-agent acquisitions. What's important for Morgan is striking when opportunities arise and giving the coaching staff every possible tool needed to excel when competitive action begins in 2025.
It'll be a waiting game for the Panthers. A strong end to the season saw them pick up four wins over the second half of 2024. This was good for morale, but it left them at No. 8 overall thanks in no small part to the unusual number of terrible teams with bad records.
Using the NFL Mock Draft Database simulator, we took a look at how the Panthers might approach their selections in our seven-round pre-Senior Bowl mock draft.