Benjamin Solak on Panthers draft needs

[TheSpecialJuan]

Picks: Nos. 19, 51, 83, 119, 158, 159, 200

I'm extremely excited for the Panthers' 2026 draft. How could you not be? After two straight offseasons of aggressive defensive spending, coordinator Ejiro Evero's unit looks ready to make the leap. Jaelan Phillips and Devin Lloydfill out two of the biggest gaps on the roster, though the Panthers should not be discounted from drafting a top edge rusher early. Phillips is a major injury risk and not a sack artist, so he doesn't fully solve the Panthers' 5.3% sack rate from last season (27th in the league). The Panthers might be the Akheem Mesidor(Miami) team, as they need his production immediately.

The Panthers are also often tagged as the Kenyon Sadiq team, which is very possible. No one among Tommy Tremble, Ja'Tavion Sanders and Mitchell Evans has played his way into an unquestioned starting role. But the Panthers do have three tight ends on the roster, two of whom are on rookie contracts. Sadiq would fit nicely in Dave Canales' offense, which has a dynamic screen game and schemes up targets well. But I'd like to see an accompanying move to make room at the position for Sadiq's snaps to love the pick. There's much more room at wide receiver, where a second three-level option to run besides Offensive Rookie of the Year Tetairoa McMillan could really bust open this offense.

I could see an early pick spent in the secondary, which might come as a surprise to some. Slot corner Chau Smith-Wade has been fine but could be improved upon if an elite nickel option is available at No. 51 (think D'Angelo Ponds from Indiana or Keionte Scottfrom Miami). Depth behind the outside corners is also quite thin, and Mike Jackson (29 years old) is in a contract year, so a player with inside-out versatility would have even more value. Clemson's Avieon Terrell, anyone?

The Panthers can also buttress the slot by drafting a safety with good man coverage traits to play opposite Tre'von Moehrig, as neither Lathan Ransom nor Nick Scott has emphatically secured that role. Treydan Stukes(Arizona) is another option who would make a lot of sense at No. 51.

Bottom line: Wide receiver, pass rusher and defensive back are the big needs. Attack them aggressively -- this is the end of Bryce Young's rookie contract, so it's time to push

[TheSpecialJuan]

https://www.espn.com/nfl/draft2026/story/_/id/48494162/2026-nfl-draft-32-teams-positions-picks-grades-predictions-needs-solak#car

[OldhamA]

2 hours ago, TheSpecialJuan said:

 

Picks: Nos. 19, 51, 83, 119, 158, 159, 200

I'm extremely excited for the Panthers' 2026 draft. How could you not be? After two straight offseasons of aggressive defensive spending, coordinator Ejiro Evero's unit looks ready to make the leap. Jaelan Phillips and Devin Lloydfill out two of the biggest gaps on the roster, though the Panthers should not be discounted from drafting a top edge rusher early. Phillips is a major injury risk and not a sack artist, so he doesn't fully solve the Panthers' 5.3% sack rate from last season (27th in the league). The Panthers might be the Akheem Mesidor(Miami) team, as they need his production immediately.

The Panthers are also often tagged as the Kenyon Sadiq team, which is very possible. No one among Tommy Tremble, Ja'Tavion Sanders and Mitchell Evans has played his way into an unquestioned starting role. But the Panthers do have three tight ends on the roster, two of whom are on rookie contracts. Sadiq would fit nicely in Dave Canales' offense, which has a dynamic screen game and schemes up targets well. But I'd like to see an accompanying move to make room at the position for Sadiq's snaps to love the pick. There's much more room at wide receiver, where a second three-level option to run besides Offensive Rookie of the Year Tetairoa McMillan could really bust open this offense.

I could see an early pick spent in the secondary, which might come as a surprise to some. Slot corner Chau Smith-Wade has been fine but could be improved upon if an elite nickel option is available at No. 51 (think D'Angelo Ponds from Indiana or Keionte Scottfrom Miami). Depth behind the outside corners is also quite thin, and Mike Jackson (29 years old) is in a contract year, so a player with inside-out versatility would have even more value. Clemson's Avieon Terrell, anyone?

The Panthers can also buttress the slot by drafting a safety with good man coverage traits to play opposite Tre'von Moehrig, as neither Lathan Ransom nor Nick Scott has emphatically secured that role. Treydan Stukes(Arizona) is another option who would make a lot of sense at No. 51.

Bottom line: Wide receiver, pass rusher and defensive back are the big needs. Attack them aggressively -- this is the end of Bryce Young's rookie contract, so it's time to push

Once again he fails to mention the elephant in the room.

Also he's incredibly disrespectful to Coker. It ain't just T-Mac and a bunch of scrubs in that room.

[jfra78]

FS, CB, DT, OT, LB, C, E, G, WR, TE, RB, QB could all be upgraded

[Swaggasaurus]

3 hours ago, OldhamA said:

Once again he fails to mention the elephant in the room.

Also he's incredibly disrespectful to Coker. It ain't just T-Mac and a bunch of scrubs in that room.

11 games 394 yards for Coker last year. I really like him, but Jerry Rice he is not yet.

[frankw]

12 minutes ago, jfra78 said:

FS, CB, DT, OT, LB, C, E, G, WR, TE, RB, QB could all be upgraded

For all the talk of drafting another WR it's a moot point with what we have behind center. If we want to somehow navigate a winning record with our upcoming opponents we're going to need another very strong running game. People can say what they want about Rico Dowdle now that he's gone but if you remove his high level production at a critical point last season there's no way we make the playoffs or win the division. That's just all there is to it. I like Chuba Hubbard but it remains to be seen if 2024 Chuba was a mirage because of what we invested in the OL or if he will be able to replicate that again. Reasonable questions.

[strato]

Wonder if we draft a RB. Seems like a lot of eggs in Brooks’ basket right now. 
And the OL, no kidding. If that running game goes to hell with what we have at QB, you can forget competing. It is so much more important than sticking another wideout on the field. Take your wideout later. 

[csx]

OL then RB would make heads explode but its might not be too unlikely 

[strato]

No I want one of those LBs in the second. Right or wrong. 
I think this is said to be a down class of RBs. I would hope there would be a run of the mill stud somewhere later though. Out of all the young men in the USA who played RB, there kind of have to be one or two in there somewhere. We just need one. 

[csx]

I might be making an obvious statement but. Is he just blatantly using AI to write this?

[OldhamA]

9 hours ago, Swaggasaurus said:

11 games 394 yards for Coker last year. I really like him, but Jerry Rice he is not yet.

Can't throw the ball to himself.

[WUnderhill]

1 hour ago, OldhamA said:

Can't throw the ball to himself.

Matthew Stafford led the league in passing with 4700 yards. That is 1.56x Bryce Young’s 3011. Coker averaged 35.8 yds/game. Multiplied by 1.56 that is 55.8. If he played all 17 games with Matthew Stafford that is 949 yds. Right now he’s either a really good 3rd option or a pretty good second option. On the Rams, even his adjusted ypg puts him as the third option, which would lower his ypg. Unfortunately, he’s only playing 11 games a season so far as well. Hopefully he bucks that trend. Point is, it’s not really disrespectful at this point to look at our WR room and say it could use a #2.

I like Coker and hope he continues to develop and plays a full season and stabilizes our #2 receiver spot for years to come, but he gets very overhyped on this board sometimes.

[csx]

Coker is quite obviously better than his stats show. All it takes is watching the games.  Im not saying hes great yet. Just better than his stats. Most everybody sees it.

[PanthersNCSU]

12 hours ago, jfra78 said:

FS, CB, DT, OT, LB, C, E, G, WR, TE, RB, QB could all be upgraded

Yeah, this is why I'm not stressing about positions. In the first, I *want* a S or OT. In the second I want one of the LBs. 

But even though I think this team finally is starting to stack some talent...we're still one bad year from being in the shitter again with a lot of money tied up into injury prone guys. BPA drafting is partially a myth IMO, but truly draft for BPA as much as possible. Keep building the team, and then let's see where we go with QB in 2027.