Panthers news: Draft trades, Ejiro Evero, Derrick Brown, Bryce Young
By Dean Jones
Carolina Panthers draft trades?
As previously mentioned, the Carolina Panthers will no doubt receive some calls for the No. 33 overall selection in the hours before Day 2 of the 2024 NFL Draft gets underway. This is typically the case, especially if a promising edge rusher or quarterback drops out of the first round entirely.
Dan Morgan can also go up if someone high on his board becomes available in an acceptable range. Considering how the new general manager has approached this offseason, he won't hesitate to pull the trigger if he feels it's best to take this franchise forward.
Darin Gantt from the team's website delved deeper into Carolina's trade options in his weekly mailbag. The writer acknowledged that moving up seemed unlikely. However, the Panthers might also resist the temptation to trade down the pecking order in favor of acquiring some immediate difference-makers with potential first-round grades.
"The Panthers may not have a first, but with 33, 39, and 65 on the second day of the draft, they ought to be able to add three players who can help this team, even if they're not immediate starters. The Panthers filled a lot of vacancies in free agency, so they don't have big glaring needs, but there are still a number of obvious positions where they need help. So trading up seems unlikely.
"Now, will they trade down? Maybe. If there are quarterbacks at the top of the second round, and people get itchy for one and want to overpay for the privilege of picking 33rd, perhaps. But those kinds of deals are actually kind of rare and not as lucrative as you think. If somebody wanted to give the Panthers a future first for that slot, you have to listen. And maybe a quarterback creates that kind of desperation. But moving back in the second round usually doesn't offer franchise-changing compensation, so the best bet may be to hang tight and take players you want."
It's not a bad spot for Morgan to be in all things considered. Having the No. 1 overall selection would be nice, but the important thing from Carolina's perspective is extracting every last ounce of value from the assets they have.
Anything less would be a huge dent in the team's plans for progression.