Here’s who most NFL draft experts expect the Panthers to pick in the first round
The 2022 NFL draft is just over a week away, yet there is still not much consensus about what is going to happen at the top.
The Panthers pick at No. 6 overall. Experts most commonly tie Carolina to either a quarterback or a left tackle. Ikem Ekwonu (N.C. State), Charles Cross (Mississippi State) and Evan Neal (Alabama) are considered the top three tackles. Some mock drafts have all three going before the Panthers are on the clock. Other projections forecast Carolina having to choose between one of those tackles and either quarterback Kenny Pickett or Malik Willis.
On Monday, The Athletic’s Diante Lee and ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. released new mock drafts. Lee pegged Carolina with Ekwonu while Kiper had the Panthers take Willis. Last week, ESPN draft analysts Todd McShay and Jordan Reid both predicted the Panthers will select Pickett. NFL Network’s Charles Davis mocked Willis to Carolina, making him the first quarterback selected. Reid had Willis going No. 2 to the Detroit Lions.
Despite all those different names, the Panthers drafting Pickett is the second-most popular top-10 selection, according to NFL Mock Draft Database, a site that compiles the projections and creates a consensus pick for each first-round team. Pickett to the Panthers has a 47 percent mock draft popularity. Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson has a consensus popularity of 70 percent to Jacksonville.
There are some oddities in the database. Most notably, Willis is not mocked to a team because he does not have a consensus landing place.
The Panthers have spent the last few weeks hosting several of the tackles and quarterbacks they have been tied to. Carolina hosted Willis, Pickett, Desmond Ridder (Cincinnati) and Matt Corral (Ole Miss) last week, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Ekwonu, Cross and UNC quarterback Sam Howell visited the Panthers on Monday. The Panthers will host more prospects this week. Each team is allowed to bring in 30 prospects for interviews, physicals and meetings.
Pickett to Carolina makes sense but the Panthers will also do their due diligence trying to trade back from No. 6. NBC’s Peter King reported that NFL GMs see this draft as one of the most mysterious in years because of the glaring lack of blue-chip talent.
One general manager told King that he feels bad for Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer. The GM told King “Scott Fitterer is well-respected, and I feel bad for him. I’d hate to need a quarterback this year, with an owner all over you to find one, and have to draft one with this group. No one feels great about any of these guys.”
Another general manager warned King that there will be a lot of inaccurate mock drafts this year due to the lack of consensus in the first five to 10 picks.
For fans, that should make this draft difficult to bet on but fun to watch. Panthers fans will have to wait a while in between Carolina’s first two selections. Currently, the Panthers pick at No. 6, which should happen late Thursday evening. The team does not have another selection until the fourth round Sunday.
The Panthers have zero picks between No. 10 and 130 while Baltimore and Kansas City each have seven selections between those selections.
