Panthers Trade Up for Penn State Safety Zakee Wheatley

0:00On April 25th, the Carolina Panthers just shook things up on day 3 of the 2026 NFL draft, trading up to grab the 100. 51st overall pick and snagging Penn State Safety's Aiki Wheatley. They dealt with the Miami Dolphins, sending over their 158th and 200th picks while picking up that 151st. Spot plus the 227th in the 7th round. Wheatley stands 6 feet 3, weighs 203 pounds, hails from Crofton, Maryland and ball out for 5 seasons with the Knitney lines. Racking up 223 tackles and 6 picks across 58 games from 2021 to 2025. He slots in nicely with the Panthers' other Saturday grabs like Texas A&M cornerback will lead the third at a 129th overall and Kansas State Center Sam Hecht at 144th. With pick 227 still in their pocket, Carolina's building depth on defense eyes on how Wheatley fits into their secondary plans. Moving forward, that's your update from NFL News Today, powered by AI.