Super Bowls are won between the margins, and Carolina Panthers general manager Dan Morgan has a clear understanding of that.
It’s easy to hit on players at any spot in the first round, but the best teams hit on the guys other teams have overlooked. Trey Smith, Tarheeb Still, Brock Purdy, and Jalen Coker are the sort of unheralded afterthoughts that make rosters elite.
The Panthers know this. It’s also why they continue to give overlooked prospects opportunities in camp. Mello Dotson is the latest.
Dotson went into the 2025 NFL Draft with hopes of being an early Day 3 pick. He lit up the stat sheet for Kansas in the Big 12. He was one of the best players at the Shrine Bowl. Unfortunately for the defensive back, that isn’t how his weekend turned out.
He not only fell in the draft, but Dotson fell completely out of it. The Las Vegas Raiders wasted no time snatching him up as an undrafted free agent, but he was waived after failing to catch on.
Mello Dotson has what it takes to sneak onto Carolina Panthers roster
I have covered the Panthers' desperation at the cornerback spot before, so there is no need to rehash it. However, the team is one injury away from having the worst starting corner group in the NFL, and Jaycee Horn is known for missing multiple games a season.
So what do you do? Keep swinging at low-risk, high-upside guys. If they don’t see the field, who cares? But if they do, you are closer to playing meaningful games in January.
What Dotson does best is exactly the type of player you want opposite a shutdown corner. With a guy like Horn who blankets receivers and takes away an entire side of the field, the Panthers need someone who will make quarterbacks pay for testing him.
That is Dotson.
In his three years as a starter with the Jayhawks, Dotson had 24 pass deflections and 12 interceptions. His ability to force turnovers is something the Panthers have not had since Donte Jackson. It would also take the pressure off the offense, giving them short fields to work with, and it could force teams to throw over the middle of the field. This is much more dangerous than testing corners on the boundary.
Dotson also fits exactly what Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero loves to do. Standing at 6-foot-1 and 192 pounds with almost 32-inch arms, he is a long and tall corner who is feisty in coverage and against the run. He does a great job mirroring receivers in off-man and attacking the ball in the air, regardless of the position he is in.
The rookie is also great in off-zone, playing well in Cover 6, 3, and quarters, where he can keep his eyes on the quarterback and receiver at the same time.
Dotson plays the position as if he's a safety at times, almost disregarding the receiver once he identifies the route concepts to make plays on the ball, something he accomplished effectively in college. His closing speed is one of the best aspects of his game, allowing him to recover when beaten, but more importantly, slam the window shut on quarterbacks when targeting his primary assignment.
I genuinely believe that Dotson will make this roster as a depth piece at the very least. He fits the mold of what the Panthers need opposite Horn. He fits the mold that Evero loves in his secondary. And frankly, Carolina doesn't have any better options.
Signing Dotson was the correct move. The tape shows it, the stat sheet shows it. Now it is time for the player to show it in training camp and the preseason.