Report: Panthers were worried Colts would trade up to No. 1

As the aftermath of Friday’s blockbuster deal unfolds, it appears the Carolina Panthers got aggressive in their trade talks because they were reportedly worried the Indianapolis Colts were going to make the move first.

In a deal that saw the Panthers give up the Nos. 9 and 61 picks, a 2024 first-round pick, a 2025 second-round pick and wide receiver D.J. Moore, Carolina gave up a haul to move up eight spots in the draft order.

The Colts were never going to match that offer in order to move up three spots from the No. 4 overall pick.

But, according to Mike Silver of Bally Sports, the idea that the Colts might do that made the Panthers become more aggressive in their deal.

While the Panthers reportedly are open to trading down from the pick they just acquired, it’s likely that they will stay there unless they can’t an offer they simply can’t refuse. We probably shouldn’t expect the Colts to make that kind of offer.

Instead, the Colts now have two realistic options. They can stay at the No. 4 overall pick, hoping their top quarterback isn’t taken by the Panthers or Houston Texans and also hoping another team doesn’t jump to No. 3 pick to steal a quarterback.

Or they can move up one spot in a trade with the Arizona Cardinals to ensure they have a shot at one of the top three quarterback prospects in the draft. Who they would prefer in that scenario is unclear, and they would have to feel pretty convicted that they can come away with the prospect they want.

We’ll see what happens over the next month and a half before the draft arrives, but the Colts are now in a somewhat complicated scenario even if the likelihood of them making a grand offer for the No. 1 pick was probably unrealistic to begin with.

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Story originally appeared on Colts Wire