Ranking top 12 wide receiver prospects: Who will the Carolina Panthers draft?

4. Adonai Mitchell

I’ve been a fan of Adonai Mitchell’s game for almost a year now. Although there are some concerns, he offers a skill set that I have fully bought into as a draft evaluator. 

Before transferring to Texas, Mitchell was a clutch performer for the Georgia Bulldogs during the postseason. He came down with significant touchdowns in the winning minutes of some of their playoff and national championship games. With the Longhorns, he helped lead them to the doorstep of their first national title appearance since 2009. 

Mitchell is a three-level threat with great athleticism and size. He offers incredible fluidity and nimble foot speed that allows him to create almost consistent separation as a route runner while varying his tempo depending on the concept. He displays quality ball skills that allow him to snag passes away from his frame while being able to track passes well on vertical planes.

The former three-star high school recruit also displays the lateral quickness and salesman ability to beat press-man consistently at the line of scrimmage. Some wasted movements need to be cleaned up before the catch and his effort as a blocker could improve. Either way, Mitchell projects as a potential No. 1 wideout at the next level and would be an excellent selection if he were to fall to the Carolina Panthers at No. 33 overall.

3. Rome Odunze

Now, we have reached the consensus top three wide receiver prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft. These are the receivers that should not be considered a remote possibility to be available for Carolina in the second round. However, there are no guarantees in the draft and it doesn’t hurt to understand what type of players these guys are. 

When it comes to the debate between Malik Nabers and Rome Odunze for WR2, it is as simple as flipping a coin. It’s more about preference with these two spots than anything, which just goes to show how great both prospects are.

Odunze was a consensus All-American receiver in 2023, becoming one of the bigger pieces in the Washington Huskies’ run to the national championship game. There isn’t much of anything to critique about his game. In most classes, he’s the top dog at his position.

At 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds, Odunze is a great athlete who is smooth yet sudden for his size. He has plenty of speed to win foot races and has shown some occasional value as a punt returner during his college career. The wideout also has wonderful ball skills and contested catch ability along with elite tracking ability that allows him to display late hands on vertical stems.

Odunze has shown to win after the catch, showing the fluid change of direction ability along with terrific body control at the catch point. He can win at a high level from any alignment and offers the football IQ to destroy zone coverage consistently.

Whoever drafts Odunze is getting a true X-receiver at the next level with the ceiling to be one of the better playmakers at his position overall.