Panthers Options Without Luck

The sports world is a buzz over the announcement that Andrew Luck will not declare for the NFL Draft rather return to Stanford.  This is devastating to the many Mock Drafts out there but its more devastating to the Carolina Panthers.  The Panthers were not shy about their love for Luck and now it appears they will be going forward with Jimmy Clausen as their quarterback.  This decision will have a major impact on the rest of the draft as the Panthers are now almost assured to go in a different direction than quarterback.  Below is the direction I feel the Panthers will and should go with their first round selection.

If you venture over and take a look at our Big Board the next top prospects after Luck are Da’Quan Bowers, Nick Fairly, AJ Green, and Patrick Peterson.  When you start talking about the number 1 overall pick you have to think about specific position value.   Immediately, I eliminate Peterson and Green from the discussion because the fact remains you can find quality receivers and corners in the later rounds of the draft.  Something you cannot find in the later rounds is a premier pass rusher or someone that can penetrate the backfield.  Let me rephrase that, its not that you cannot find those types of players but it is very unlikely.  So to me the decision is down to Da’Quan Bowers and Nick Fairly both of whom can create pressure in the opponents backfield.

Breaking down the Panthers roster they have a glaring hole in the middle of their defensive line where they employ the likes of Derek Landri and Nick Hayden.  Adding a player like Nick Fairly would bring the type of presence this Panthers team sorely needs.  Fairly has busted on the scene and has put himself in consideration for this position.  However, I do have some concerns about Fairly’s game and production.  Right now the biggest concern I have is that Fairly excels at penetration but has struggled taking on double teams at the college level.  If your using the #1 overall pick on someone you want them to be a complete player and I am not 100% confident that he can hold strong at the point of attack.  I also wanted to point out that Fairly has really only made a difference this season at Auburn.

Da’Quan Bowers is the type of player that is worthy of the #1 overall selection.  He gives me a Julius Peppers vibe in the way that he gets at the quarterback and holds strong against the run.  The Panthers do have Charles Johnson who produced 11.5 sacks this season but I expect him to face a lot more double teams next season.  The defensive end tandem of Johnson and Bowers would be deadly and give offensive coordinators nightmares.  I suspect that Luck’s decision will impact the Panthers coaching search leaning them to add a more defensive minded coach.

Stay tuned for a lot more analysis on Andrew Luck’s decision because this is going to be a hot topic for awhile.