ESPN lists Panthers as trade-up candidate for 2023 draft’s No. 1 pick
If the Carolina Panthers want to move up to the very top spot in the NFL draft, they’re going to have to pay. And on Thursday, ESPN’s Matt Miller and Courtney Cronin came up with a price.
While piecing together three potential offers for the Chicago Bears, owners of the 2023 No. 1 overall pick, the two landed on the Panthers—who sit pretty far behind at No. 9. So, their proposal ended up being the beefiest of the bunch—with the ninth overall pick, a 2023 third-rounder, a 2023 fourth-rounder, a 2024 first-rounder and a 2024 third-rounder thrown into the pot.
Miller writes:
One former NFL general manager told me, “Anytime you trade back that far, you can’t be certain who will still be on the board. So you have to be really comfortable with the draft class as a whole and with your roster having enough needs that you can still get an impact player out of the first round. The Bears fit that model well with the needs they have.”
It’s a risk, but the payoff might be the best for the future of the team. The future first- and third-rounders would give Chicago a chance to attack a 2024 class that, from an early perspective, looks stronger overall.
That certainly doesn’t look too bad for the Panthers, who have been starving for a long-term answer under center. And given that they’d have to jump the Houston Texans, who own the second overall selection, to get their pick of the litter—the swap looks a lot better.
Is that, however, enough for Chicago? Cronin added a bit of an alternative:
And since we’re talking about Carolina, I’ll take this trade scenario one step further. The Panthers have a lot of young talent that could fit nicely to the nucleus in Chicago. If the Panthers packaged an immediate impact player into a deal, the Bears might consider a trade that yields less picks.
Since Carolina could very well contend for the NFC South title in 2023, perhaps they’d be less inclined to part ways with a proven talent. But in a time where quarterbacks have never been more important, they’ll still be at the mercy of the Bears if they want to make such a leap.
