Round 3 - The Carolina Panthers Select DJ Johnson - EDGE - Oregon

[Tbe]

16 minutes ago, Shocker said:

That is 2 drafts,  pretty small sample size there and the last draft we didn’t have hardly any picks

Exactly. Not enough data. It does look like he might have a nack for OL talent.

[Stuart Smith]

11 hours ago, WUnderhill said:

I don’t know much about the player, but if you look at the trade itself it makes a lot of sense. First, LBs/Edge guys were coming off the board fast. Just a couple picks earlier, Zach Harrison, Marte Mapu, and Byron Young all came off the board in a row. Then a pick after we took Johnson, Diaby came off the board, and just a couple picks later Simpson and Henley came off.

It’s fallacious to assume that nobody else was targeting Johnson just because he wasn’t high on the media radar. Did anybody in the media have Marte Mapu going before Trenton Simpson? It’s interesting some people defending the Mingo pick and hating on the Johnson pick because the arguments against both are similar. When Mingo was picked, I was a bit disappointed because it seemed like a reach based on the media boards, so I get it, but ultimately I understand why they made that pick and this one. Both guys have skill sets and athletic profiles that are hard to find in the other players left on the board. If we’re looking for a big dude who can set the edge, contain the run, rush the passer as a 3-4 OLB, and also put his hands in the dirt when needed, there just wasn’t much to choose from in the entirety of the draft. Even if you look at Ojulari at the top of the second, you’re looking at a guy who has question marks around taking on blockers and stopping the run, though the pass rush skills are better. Even the age makes a little bit of sense, for instance I wanted Sanders for the same role, but he would have spent 2 years bulking up to be as big as Johnson is now, and Johnson has already shown he can carry the weight and retain his athleticism. 

In their presser, Fitt/Reich talked about the four different types of linebackers they need, and Johnson fills a gap there. It’s dangerous to assume that just because the media isn’t as high on a guy (which, btw, there were some who had him ranked close to where we took him), that he will be there at 93 or 114. If they felt the gap was significant between him and the next guy who fit that profile for them, then the smart move is to go get him. As the draft goes on, the differences in big boards increases, I’m just giving the new coaching staff the benefit of the doubt for now. I can’t call them an all star staff up until the draft and immediately turn on them.

Well said! Two months ago our coaching staff was awesome, now there are a lot of melt downs over a 4th round pick. We are not privy to every scrap of information about these players, there may be a lot we do not know. As far as going by the “experts” and pundits who write these articles and evaluate these players many know nothing about them, just repeating what others have said. Truth be known, every draft pick taken this weekend is a gamble. Mel Kiper? How did it go picking Levi’s in the top ten? I will trust this coaching staff until they fail to improve this franchise. Their job depends on it. 

[Jackie Lee]

3 hours ago, Stuart Smith said:

Well said! Two months ago our coaching staff was awesome, now there are a lot of melt downs over a 4th round pick. We are not privy to every scrap of information about these players, there may be a lot we do not know. As far as going by the “experts” and pundits who write these articles and evaluate these players many know nothing about them, just repeating what others have said. Truth be known, every draft pick taken this weekend is a gamble. Mel Kiper? How did it go picking Levi’s in the top ten? I will trust this coaching staff until they fail to improve this franchise. Their job depends on it. 

It's a shame Mel Kiper has a career predicting young peoples futures. 

[Toker Smurf]

12 hours ago, WUnderhill said:

Boy this is an awful lot of hand wringing over trading away the 4th to last pick in the 4th round.

There is also an awful lot of hand wringing over people voicing their opinions of a fourth round pick. 

[bythenbrs]

14 hours ago, WOW!! said:

Way more confident on Evro and Capers then Snow..

Jon provides pretty good commentary on this board.  I’d give him a little more credit than that…

[Panthera onca]

2 hours ago, bythenbrs said:

Jon provides pretty good commentary on this board.  I’d give him a little more credit than that…

I don’t want to speak for Wow, but I think he was referencing our last defensive coordinator, Phil. Not Jon. 

[Swaggasaurus]

Pick is still a head scratcher but every time I look at the picks it makes me feel better. Around pick 60 the suck really entered this draft.

Covid super seniors really changed the landscape of this draft. There are guys who are better than those who were drafted who haven’t started a game yet in CFB. It’s just weird.

 

[Mike in Raleigh]

9 hours ago, Jackie Lee said:

It's a shame Mel Kiper has a career predicting young peoples futures. 

While being so bad at it.

[Jay Roosevelt]

I'm not a huge fan of the trade-up, but this guy really does have some legit potential.

There's nothing at all wrong with taking a high-potential athletic freak (even if he is raw) late in the 3rd round.

[bythenbrs]

4 hours ago, Panthera onca said:

I don’t want to speak for Wow, but I think he was referencing our last defensive coordinator, Phil. Not Jon. 

I know.  I was just having a little fun.  Seemed like an easy layup.

[Shocker]

Did anyone listen to this?  DJ is hammered,  Holy Guacamole 

 

[pantherj]

Yeeeaaaaaaah I'm reaaaaady coach....

[Wolfcop]

Ran across this in my Lindy’s Draft magazine: 

Sleeper

“While he is still light on technical polish, his outstanding athletic traits suggest he could outperform his draft slot.” 
 

They also rated him the 11th best OLB. 

[GRWatcher]

On 4/28/2023 at 10:36 PM, Black&BlueBubba said:

I want to hear the presser on him.  Maybe that will give some clarity. 

The Panthers YouTube channel has everyone's meet-the-press zoom call except Johnson's. Yet Mike Kaye on Twitter referenced it so we know it happened. Does anyone have a link to anywhere it might be?