DRAFT BOLD: Should Carolina Panthers Prioritize a TOP-TIER Wide Receiver Like KC Concepcion at 19?

0:00Hey everyone, this is Ross Jackson, one of the hosts of The Lockdown Podcast Network. If your group chat has been a little quiet lately, I want to invite you to come and join ours. If you sign up for the Every Day or Club, you get access to the members' only group chats for your favorite teams, plus national chats for every sport, personally I love watching folks talk a little smack in the NFC South Trash Talk Chat. You also get an ad-free version of your favorite locked on show and a whole lot more. You can check it out by tapping the Every Day or Club link in the show notes. The Panthers had draft a wide receiver at 19th overall. I'll tell you why right here on Lockdown Panthers. You are Lockdown Panthers, your daily Carolina Panthers podcast, part of The Lockdown Podcast

1:00Network, your team, every day. What's going on y'all, Julian Counsel, back for another episode of Lockdown Panthers. And today, I want to begin a series I want to do throughout the week on our Timinent bonus episodes by giving a case for insert position at 19th overall when looking at the draft next month in Pittsburgh. And today, I'll focus in on wide receiver and provide the case while the Panthers should take a wider receiver for the third year in a row there in the first round. So Dan Morgan, we spoke to him on Friday afternoon. He said the Panthers based off of all they didn't free and see by getting Rashid Walker at left tackle. Children Phillips at an edge and inside lineback are bringing in Devon Lloyd, Luke Fortner at center and all the other moves that they've made that they are in position to go into the draft and take best player available, assuming at 19 and really anywhere else when they look at their board next month up in Pittsburgh. Now think back to last year, I don't think anyone is really arguing that the Panthers were

2:05in a position to go best player available when looking at their eighth overall. But considering that it was the worst defense and the league, the worst scoring defense in history of the league in that, yes, they brought in Trvon Merrick, they would have bring in some other guys like Mike Jackson coming back for another year, signing that two year deal. They brought in Turkwort and by around the third. You didn't look at the Panthers room defensively and think, okay, yeah, they're set. They don't need to do anything else this year. They have the two starting corners and JC and in Mike Jack, they have all three of the top safety from last year back on the roster, Aisha and Robinson's gone, but they have a nice five man rotation led by Derek Brown there at defensive tackle. They brought in Devin Lloyd, Trevin wallows is back for another year. You have Clon Sherless, you look at the defense edge, Russia, Austin Jones, Phillips, Nick Scorton. They're going to start Pat Jones, second, Prince of Miami, Ellen, they're in a good spot just when you look at just the two deep right now defensively to where yes, I agree, Dan, there is not an obvious need on that roster defensively and on the roster in general,

3:10when looking at this team that where you can go best player available last year, that was not the case. We spent a lot of time, a lot of waste of time as it turned out to be discussing the Panthers taking Jill and Walker or taking Mike Williams, just taking any defensive player. And as we got closer to the draft, it felt like possibly defensive tackle would be what they took. It felt like the focus very clearly when looking us at what the needs were for them last year, were they absolutely had needs and it was not a best player available situation on the outside looking in was either edge Russia defensive tackle linebacker would have made some sense, just get a defensive player to help was a awful unit in 2024. And as we all know, Dan said, nah, we're going to go for a board. We're not going to move back. That's too far. We don't want to go back that far. We're going to set eight and we're going to take Teteroma, McMillan and that turned out to be a home run pick as T Mac, one rookie of the year. He broke and set a franchise record in receiving yardage as a rookie.

4:13And he turns out to be the true replacement to DJ Moore and the number one wide receiver that Carolina needed for Bryce. I've been looking for once they traded DJ a couple years ago in order to get Bryce their number one overall in that trade with Chicago. So that was an outstanding pick. But you look at the rest of the wide receiver room last season after the trade away Adam Thielin immediately that next day at practice, Joan coca injures his quad and misses six weeks of the season and comes back and it took a while. May big plays against the Rams on that fourth down big play against the Saints and the third and that game on the road against the Orleans and obviously had a breakout game before the nation's eyes against the Rams and the wild card round back in January. But you haven't been able to rely on coca to this point in time to be active and able to play in every single game so far of his career, which has a rookie, not that big of a deal. Last year certainly was a big deal at points and times, exactly like that, who you traded up from 33 to 32 overall couple years ago to get has obviously not been who Carolina wanted

5:17or expected him to be at this point in time, T Mac is the only guy I look at right now, whether it be Jimmy Horn Jr. or Bryson Tremay, who apparently I'm overlooking according to one person on the YouTube comments, whether it be David Moore, who all of you are overlooking, whether it be John Mechie coming in, I just don't look at anybody, other than I guess cocker. But truly, I look at T Mac is the only one where yeah, that guy is going to be available for you. He's going to be a dog for you every single week. I put cocker in that category, even with the Andrews, I think I trust him when he's available to be a good player, better than that. You have two guys that you can trust. That's not enough. And we'll see Jimmy's role. I'm sure expand as he continues to work hard. I'm sure we'll see more to Bryson Tremay. I don't know what we're going to see out of Excel and if he is going to take that next step and then John Mechie, it's a nice by low on him as far as a former second round pick who has experience of your quarterback to come in and compete, I'm not going to

6:18bank on that. So when I see Daniel Jeremiah for, I believe the second time, I didn't see his mock draft 2.0, but I saw 1.0 and he had care on it, taking Jordan Tyson, the YVC Ramirez on his state at 90th overall. But now his latest mock draft from a week ago, he has panthers taking Charlotte native Casey conception from Texas and then via NC state, of course, going 19th overall saying the panthers add more firepower for Bryson with his ability to separate before and after the catch conception on forms a strong past catching trio with Ted or Macmillan and Jill and coca I have a hard time seeing the panthers doing that and me not liking it. I love that idea because I do not trust what they have outside of T Mac and Jill and coca right now. I just don't see that third receiver. It could be matching. It could finally be XL. Maybe it's Jimmy Horne Jr. I just don't think there's a guarantee and yes, you're right. You can't guarantee that if you take Casey conception on or any wider see where that 19

7:21that those guys are going to step in and immediately be that guy, but where's your slot? Who is that? Because Casey is a much better player at least in college than Jimmy Horne was. I mean, John met you as a damn good player at Alabama, but it's been a while and we'll see after the health issues, if he can finally have that breakout and a familiar territory because he's going to be with his old quarterback and price, but I like the idea of taking a wide receiver at 99. I am not against that at all. And you look at what Jackson Smith and Jigba made on Monday morning, the market, the positional value, it's important to get a young guy whose cost controlled and not have to worry about paying $41.25 million annual average value on a deal like Seattle's pan for Jackson Smith and Jigba, who may man, Jayson's one of the best receivers in the league very clearly and deserving of it. But yeah, if you can get some young guys in the first round who are talented around your young quarterback, you're going to pay very soon.

8:22That would make some sense to me. So I'm in on taking a wide receiver at 90 over all. So they do that. Who are the potential options? We'll talk about that here in just a moment on locked on Panthers. College basketball is nonstop big games tight spreads momentum swings every single night from early tip off. As a late night West Coast shootouts, there's always action on the board and now Fandall is giving you a way to turn that energy into even bigger potential win to make college basketball parlay profit boost. You can build any college hoops, parlay you want, rivalry games, rake matchups, whatever fits you read. You can mix spreads, tolls and player props to match how you see this late playing out. Then you can apply the profit boost and instantly bump up the potential payout. Go save, go bold. A rival team have been following all season long. That is, if they're still in the tournament, it's your parlay, your style. If more upside behind it, head to fandall.com to get started. That's fandall.com. Fandall play your game workplace chaos deadline stacking up inbox overflowing in the one position you have to fill still sitting open when the pressure's on and you need the right hire. This is a job, a sponsor jobs needs bounce jobs up to reach people actually fit what you're

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10:26number one pick and my all time favorite five hour energy shot. I love the bold cherry candy style flavor. It's sweet with a light tart edge. And as it cleans, slightly tangy finish, five hour energy shots give you a boost of zero sugar. Find your new favorite flavor. Five hour energy shots fill online at fivearrange.com or on Amazon. So if the panthers do go with the wide receiver at 19 overall, who are their options? Well, the four I'm looking at are macaque lemon from Southern Cal Jordan, Tyson from Arizona State, Casey, Concepcion from NC State. Well, I wrote down it's a state text saying, am I what they're going to call them? But yeah, NC State, text saying, and then Omar Cooper Jr. from Indiana. Those are the four guys when looking at some of these mocks, including Daniel Jeremiah's, they're the guys who are in range there at 19, which also kind of calls in the question people who asked me, oh, should the panthers trade back? Well, what if they trade up and go get somebody that they like at receiver?

11:29But I think those four are around that range. I'm guessing that macaque lemon, the Blitnikov award winner for the best receiver in college football will not be available at 19th overall, but it's a possibility, but a highly doubt. So he's probably not going to be on the board. That would be foreign away, the guy that I would want them to get at 19. He was excellent last season at USC, and he would be a perfect pick for the panthers have a slot receiver. Now Jordan Tyson from Arizona State was their offense back in 2000, sorry, 2024, not 2000 or 2024, when Arizona State went to the playoff, and he wasn't even available in a big 12 title game or in that playoff, overtime loss against Texas down in Atlanta. But he is a guy that's also really good. Been kind of banged up the last two years, but would love to see him come to Carolina. Casey talked about him. He can be a punt returner. And that was one of the issues that Carolina kind of had a season ago, Trevor, he only mucked it twice and it did not lead to any points at all.

12:29I thought he did a fine job back there as their punt return, but he did not really do a ton in terms of axi returning punts. Casey could be that guy year one now, eventually because teams don't want to put any of their star players back there on special teams or return and you don't want to risk injury. That will not be the case. As far as a one year type of deal, you could have Casey B, your slot receiver and also be your punt returner this upcoming fall and then Omar Cooper Jr. If you watched Indiana, I mean, the back shoulder throws that Fernando windows have had to these guys all season long was ridiculous, but he was their top receiver. This past season, I think he would be awesome as well and would fall right around that range. Now, if they do do this, there will be a question about what happens then with someone like XL, I think it's very clear that if they draft the receiver at 19, you need to move on from him. You're keeping jail and coaker for hopefully if they get the deal done correctly, probably for two years at minimum, I'm probably at maximum and then you're going to also, you

13:33already have T Mac, who is already on track for he's going to get to fit your option. He's going to get a big time deal, he'll be your guy. So you want those guys to be around for at minimum the next two seasons as you're taught to receivers and it would help if you draft one to where it would be some cover for coaker. And I know co-cats and all the fans out there don't want to hear about coaker not being a Panther one day, but a jail and continues to ascend any signs, whatever kind of deal they give him. I would think would be wise be a two year deal for both team and player. And he continues to perform at a high level when available. He's going to have a market outside of Carolina to where maybe Panthers can't keep him if they can. Obviously be great, but if you can't in two years time, you have a young player like a conception on or Jordan Tyson, potentially Omar Cooper. And if the gods are smiling upon Carolina favorably, McIleman entering into his third year to pair up with T Mac, who'd be in his fourth year and probably already have his fifth year option exercise to that point.

14:33So you'd still be in a good spot if that's the case, but if they bring in another receiver at 19, they make it three straight years where they've drafted one and the good thing about Excel, not working out to this point is that they did identify Joe and Koch and that Joe and has been really good for them is they still got a young receiver in that draft year, who's a starter for them, even if it's not Xavier. So if they do draft a receiver at 19, I think you move on from Xavier look at you probably don't get a ton for him, but he was a first round pick and that's always going to give it got a player and opportunity to tape is not great, but it's not like absolutely dreadful like a mingo where you're just shocked at anyone who want to take him on. I don't think he's been particularly great, but there's somebody can convince himself there's something there. And I think this organization right now still believes, but they know he's got to be a lot better and they brought in competition already in matchy. Maybe they'd be on as that, but he's going to be in the room. I think 19th overall taking a receiver, I would be in on that and they do Excel likely a good buy. But that's going to wrap up this edition of Lockdown Panthers podcast, bar lock down podcast

15:35network. That's about yours, Julie, Julie and council, Ginyal Skype fall show free over on YouTube or wherever you listen to your favorite podcast, make sure to follow me, Julie and council over on Twitter and blue sky at Julian council, where I will be back with y'all again on Tuesday. We're going to be talking about what the Panthers should do in the draft. You've been asking me a lot of questions about this. You do, I'm going to finally answer a lot of those questions and tell you where things stand one month away from the draft. And then on our bonus episode, we're going to continue our series throughout this week discussing what the Panthers should do at 19, the case for each position. And we're going to give you the case. I'm going to give you the case for the Panthers selecting a tight end on Tuesday's bonus episode. So stay tuned for all that on Tuesday here on the Lockdown Panthers.