Panthers’ draft showcased Scott Fitterer’s expertise building a team in the NFL

In his second NFL draft as the Panthers’ general manager — and first with a full year to evaluate talent and implement his scouting system — Scott Fitterer addressed Carolina’s key roster needs by both staying patient and continuing his wheeling-and-dealing ways.

Fitterer’s Jekyll-and-Hyde style makes him a master at working the war room phones. He’s engaged in trade talks until those discussions no longer favor Carolina. He’s comfortable exiting one conversation for another, weaving his way to the best deal.

Just when you think the Panthers are content, they re-enter the “Let’s make a trade” group chat.

When the phones finally stopped buzzing and the draft concluded Saturday night, Carolina finished with six selections and two trades made. Most importantly, the Panthers identified two future franchise pillars in left tackle Ikem Ekwonu from N.C. State and Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral.

“Scott’s greatest impact comes when you look at the work being done by people whose names we don’t ever hear,” coach Matt Rhule said Saturday night. “Scott has built a really well-tuned, oiled machine. I think he did a good job of giving people a say but at the same time having a standard for what he wants.”

From scouting coordinator Samatha Diamond to Vice President of Player Personnel Pat Stewart, Director of College Scouting Cole Spencer, Assistant General Manager Dan Morgan, Vice President of Football Administration Samir Suleiman and all the assistants and interns who helped put together thousands of scouting reports, the Panthers’ scouting department flexed its expertise this weekend.

The draft opened perfectly for Carolina. Five straight defensive players went off the board. With three edge rushers and two cornerbacks gone, the Panthers had their pick of the draft’s three best tackles. For a team set on selecting an offensive player, the draft started with Carolina.

There were fair cases to take either Evan Neal or Charles Cross but Ekwonu possesses a safe floor combined with the highest ceiling. He’s a mauling run blocker who models his game after All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams. Rarely do left tackles —usually a team’s best pass blocker — double as an offensive line’s best run blocker. But Williams does that for the 49ers, and Ekwonu could grow into a similar weapon.

Ekwonu, a 6-foot-4, 324-pound prospect, was a 2021 first-team All-American and Outland Trophy finalist. He will likely start at tackle but he’d excel at guard as well. As a pass blocker, he must improve quickly to combat elite NFL pass rushers. Some evaluators think Ekwonu would be better starting at guard as he develops in pass protection before switching to tackle in Year 2. Ekwonu doesn’t care where new offensive line coach James Campen plays him; the Charlotte native just wants to win.

“Wherever Coach Campen thinks we can win the most games,” he said. “(Campen) definitely seems like a teacher, someone who knows about the game. I believe he’s been in the NFL now coming out 17 years. So has the experience and knowledge, which is one of the biggest things that I wanted and in an O-line coach.”

Fitterer ended Day 1 saying the Panthers would spend Friday contemplating trading back into the Round 2 or 3. Carolina started the draft with no Day 2 selections because of trades it made last year for quarterback Sam Darnold and cornerback C.J. Henderson.

While 62 middle-round picks unfolded Friday night, Fitterer balanced trading up with negotiating a deal for Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield. Both teams had been in contact with each other for weeks but talks heated up when it became clear Carolina would leave draft weekend with a new quarterback one way or another. But as the rookie quarterbacks kept falling, the Panthers continued gaining leverage.

After Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder went No. 74 to Atlanta and Liberty’s Malik Willis’ free-fall finally ended at No. 86 to Tennessee, the Panthers traded pick No. 137 and their 2023 third-round selection for the Patriots’ 94th pick and took Corral.

Carolina and Cleveland couldn’t agree on how much of Mayfield’s fully guaranteed $18.9 million the Browns should pay. Knowing Corral was still available, Fitterer pivoted out of one deal and quickly struck an agreement with the Patriots.

“Scott was unbelievably elite. We had chances to trade up many times at the last minute. But his gut said not to do it and just to wait. He read the board perfectly.” Rhule said Friday night. “To think that we had no (Day 2) picks and end up with (Corral) in the third round to go along with ‘Ickey’ is really well done by not just Scott, but the entire scouting staff.”

Fitterer followed Rhule’s praise by detailing that it was Rhule who spoke with Patriots coach Bill Belichick about a deal for No. 94 while he remained engaged with Cleveland. Together, Fitterer and Rhule landed a quarterback several evaluators and analysts pegged as QB1.

Corral is the ninth quarterback drafted in Panthers history and the first since Carolina selected Will Grier at No. 100, also in the third round, in 2019. Corral’s fall is a byproduct of a strange and unpredictable draft rather than a projection of future production.

At Mississippi, He was a three-year starter and thrived in Lane Kiffin’s RPO-heavy passing offense. In 2021, Corral threw for 3,342 yards, rushed for 614 and totaled 31 touchdowns. He’s the only player in the FBS the last two years to eclipse 3,300 passing yards and 500 rushing yards, which he did twice against SEC defenses.

He’s only 6-feet tall but his athleticism helps him create off-script plays. Several scouts told The Charlotte Observer that Corral has the quickest release in his class.

“We’re gonna bring him along slowly,” Rhule said. “We’re going to train him from the ground up. He’s got a lot to learn. He’s got a lot to do, but I am unbelievably fired up to get him.”

The Panthers named Darnold their starting quarterback during the draft but it’ll be an open competition come training camp. Corral will get his first opportunity to learn new offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo’s system while showcasing his leadership skills at rookie minicamp in May.

“I’ll go in there and bring the best out of myself. And bring the best out of the people around me,” Corral said. “My competitive nature is gonna obviously want me to be the starter. I’m gonna do everything in my power that I can to do that.”

On tape, it looks like Corral has a lot to learn. But just because Ole Miss did not ask him to execute a pro-style offense does not mean he’s incapable. Eventually, the Panthers will give Corral an opportunity to prove he is their long-term solution.

Since 2018, the Panthers have started seven different quarterbacks. Just as damning, Carolina has started six different left tackles in Week 1 each of the past six years. With Ekwonu and Corral, both those trends should end soon.

Carolina wrapped up the draft by staying busy on Day 3. In Round 4, the team traded picks Nos. 144 and 149 (Round 5) to move in front of New England for Penn State linebacker Brandon Smith.

Smith is a 6-3, 250-pound athlete with coverage skills. He’ll contribute immediately on special teams while learning defensive coordinator Phil Snow’s defense. Eventually, the team hopes he can play off-ball linebacker and match up against tight ends.

After Smith, the Panthers made three more picks. At No. 189, the team selected edge rusher Amare’ Barno. He’s 6-4, 240 pounds and ran the fastest 40-yard dash time (4.36 seconds) by a defensive lineman at the combine since 2003.

Then came Tennessee offensive linemen Cade Mays at No. 199. Mays was a freshman All-American at Georgia who transferred to the Vols for his final two seasons. He started 10 games at right tackle and 18 at right guard over this career.

Carolina’s draft ended with Baylor cornerback Kalon Barnes at No. 242. He’s a former wide receiver turned defensive back with blazing speed, running the 40-yard dash in 4.23 seconds — the second-fastest 40 in NFL combine history.

In a closing press conference, Fitterer said the team is exploring signing about 12 undrafted free agents. Carolina would still like to improve at punt returner but feel this was an excellent weekend for them.

“Scott, I thought did an amazing job. He made multiple trades yet again for the second year,” Rhule said. “We felt like we have a really deep team now. We feel like over the last couple years, we’ve built depth and we wanted to add some impact players.”

Panthers 2022 draft picks

Ellis L. Williams

The Charlotte Observer

Hailing from Minnesota, Ellis L. Williams joined the Observer in October 2021 to cover the Carolina Panthers. Prior, he spent two years reporting on the Browns for Cleveland.com/the Plain Dealer. Having escaped cold winters, he’s thrilled to consume football, hoops, music and movies within the Queen City.