Carolina Panthers: 3 Biggest priorities in the 2021 NFL Draft

The Carolina Panthers made waves trading for Sam Darnold. With a quarterback now in place, what positions should be their priority for the 2021 NFL Draft?

The Carolina Panthers were well-publicized to be in the quarterback market this offseason and made their move by adding Sam Darnold in a trade with the Jets. General manager Scott Fitterer gave up a substantial amount of draft capital to secure Darnold, the former No. 3 overall pick.

The gamble seems to be one worth taking. Carolina is sending a 2021 sixth-round pick and 2022 second and fourth-round picks to New York for Darnold in the deal but the Panthers pick up the 23-year-old with two years left on his rookie contract after picking up his fifth-year option.

This comes to a cap price of $23.6 million over two years, a reasonable figure for a player they see as a top 15 quarterback in the league over the coming seasons. However, it could also become a costly mistake if Darnold cannot prove it was his situation in New York that made him look bad.

With the quarterback position sorted for at least one offseason, the team’s focus will switch to the upcoming 2021 NFL Draft. Like every other franchise, the Carolina Panthers will be eyeing up college prospects to help bolster their team needs. In particular, these three positions should be their top priority.

Carolina Panthers draft priority No. 3: Wide Receiver

The 2021 NFL Draft is stacked at the wide receiver position. With top college prospects who opted out of the 2020 season now available and a plethora of stars from the past season fresh in the minds of GMs, teams will be blessed with opportunity in the first round. As an exciting receiver can dramatically change the prospects of a team, the Panthers should be at least monitoring the position.

The team lost Curtis Samuel to the Washington Football Team this offseason. His 851 yards of production will need replacing from somewhere, whether that is from within the organization’s current roster or from a new player.

D.J. Moore is undoubtedly a star, going for 1,193 yards and 18.2 yards per reception last year. The team will still need to replace the yards that Samuel brought to the field and guaranteed success is hard to find in players in the NFL.

It should be a priority need to surround Darnold with as much quality as possible to ensure his success. With the No. 8 pick in the draft, excellent players such as DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle or Ja’Marr Chase may well still be on the board, depending on the draft day actions of other franchises. The Panthers could do worse than improving their receiving corps with a star prospect.