With the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine underway and the compensatory picks awarded, it’s a good time for another mock draft. This will be a seven-round mock for the Panthers via the new simulator over at The Draft Network using their predictive board. Let’s get started.
No. 16 – Clelin Ferrell: DE, Clemson
You can never have enough edge rushers in this league, especially in the NFC South with Drew Brees, Matt Ryan and now a Bruce Arians-coached Jameis Winston. And despite being 38 years old, Julius Peppers’ retirement leaves a void in the pass-rush rotation, one easily filled by the former Tiger. Ferrell posted 27 sacks during this time in college.
No. 47 – Erik McCoy: C, Texas A&M
The Panthers find a very solid center option here in round two to replace Ryan Kalil. McCoy is a player Carolina met with at the Senior Bowl and his draft stock is quietly rising. Tyler Larsen was fine in place of Kalil in 2016-2017 but he can be pushed by competition. Adding McCoy would provide that competition and probably net the team a new starter.
No. 77 – Terry McLaurin: WR, Ohio State
The Panthers offense has become a collection of playmakers, from Christian McCaffrey to D.J. Moore to Curtis Samuel. So, let’s pick another Ohio State playmaker in McLaurin, who turned a lot of heads in Mobile at the Senior Bowl after leading the country in yards per target and scoring 11 touchdowns in 2018. With Moore all over the field, McLaurin can be the field-stretcher to really start opening up the offense for Cam Newton.
No. 100 – Daylon Mack: DT, Texas A&M
We’ll stay on the interior for Texas A&M but switch to the other side of the line of scrimmage for this pick. If Carolina moves to a 3-4 defense, Mack would have the ability to play nose tackle. If they stay in a 4-3, Mack can be very useful as a one-technique. And if they run a mix, which is most likely, Mack becomes one of coach Ron Rivera’s chess pieces. Not a bad use of the compensatory pick the Panthers got for Andrew Norwell.
No. 115 – Kaleb McGary: OT, Washington
We don’t know what’s going on with either Matt Kalil (a potential post-June 1 cap casualty) or Daryl Williams, who is a pending free agent. We do know McGary is big (six-foot-six, 320 pounds) and could step in right away, possibly by having Taylor Moton move to left tackle and McGary to right, where he played at Washington. The main issue with McGary is his heart issue (three procedures for an arrhythmia) but he played just about every game after red-shirting his freshman season.
No. 154 – DeShaun Davis: LB, Auburn
The Panthers will need some more bodies at the linebacker position, especially if they employ some 3-4 looks, as they don’t have a ton of linebackers, especially after saying goodbye to Thomas Davis and Ben Jacobs. Jermaine Carter looks pretty versatile, which is good because Davis likely will be limited to playing on the inside. His tackling ability should also help out on special teams, where he’d play most as a rookie.
No. 187 – Brett Rypien: QB, Boise State
Of the quarterbacks still on the board at this point, Rypien probably has the most upside. He could come in and compete with Kyle Allen for the No. 2 quarterback job and possibly get some meaningful playing time during the preseason. Rypien is a roll of the dice, but so are most sixth-rounders.
