2020 NFL Draft: Grading all of the Carolina Panthers selections
The Carolina Panthers made the easy choice taking Derrick Brown in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft but how well did they fare on day two and three?
The Carolina Panthers needed to fix up their defense entering the 2020 NFL Draft and they sure did make a big effort in doing so. Carolina’s new head man, Matt Rhule, had seven selections in the 2020 NFL Draft and all seven of them are defensive players.
In the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Carolina Panthers went the safest route taking Auburn defensive lineman Derrick Brown at number seven overall. They could’ve gone with Clemson stand out defender Isaiah Simmons, but went with the much safer player. Simmons, however, does have the potential to be an all worldly defensive playmaker.
On day two, Carolina had a couple of second-round picks and selected Penn State defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos and Southern Illinois safety Jeremy Chinn. I had both of these guys rated high in the top 50 prospects. The Panthers actually traded up to number 64 with Seattle giving up picks 69 and 148 to move up five spots.
The Carolina Panthers had holes to fill in their secondary so in the fourth round so they snagged Notre Dame cornerback Troy Pride Jr then added another safety in the fifth, taking Kenny Robinson Jr from WVU. They would finish up their draft by selecting former Baylor defensive lineman Bravvion Roy in the sixth round and FIU cornerback Stanley Thomas-Oliver III in the seventh.
The Carolina Panthers did a pretty good job early on in the 2020 NFL Draft grabbing good value at positions of need. I am a bit surprised that they used all of their draft resources on defensive players, but that just shows how much help they really needed. I would’ve liked to see at least one selection used on an offensive interior lineman since they lost Trai Turner in the Okung trade and let Greg Van Roten walk, but I cannot fault them for beefing up their defense.
How did this all-defensive 2020 NFL Draft class work out? Find out as we go through and grade each and every pick that the Carolina Panthers made.