The Carolina Panthers came into the 2022 NFL draft with their hands tied. Without any picks in the second or third rounds, and pretty glaring needs at a few pretty important positions, expectations had to have been set relatively low for what the braintrust could do.
Well, they untied their hands and somehow wound up with one of the most impressive draft classes of the event. Or, at least that’s what they did according to NFL.com editors Gennaro Filice and Dan Parr.
Filice and Parr ranked the Panthers’ haul as their ninth-best overall, crediting the team’s calculated roll of the dice on high-end athletic traits.
“Going back to his college days at Baylor and Temple, Matt Rhule has always bet big on traits. And when those traits intersect with value and need, that’s a formula for success,” Filice writes.
“Coming into Thursday night, there was some question as to whether any of the top three offensive tackles would be still be available at No. 6 overall. As it turned out, Carolina had its pick of the litter, and the Panthers pounced on the Charlotte native. Ekwonu’s game still needs some polish, particularly in pass pro, but the explosive tools are plain to see in the O-line porn that is his highlight reel.”
Oh, sounds sexy.
In addition to that, uh, highlight reel, Ekwonu is one heck of an athlete for a 6-foot-4, 310-pounder. The sixth overall pick, based off Kent Lee Platte’s Relative Athletic Score (RAS), ranks 183rd out of 1,218 offensive tackles tested since 1987.
Filice then lauded Rhule and the Panthers for their following selections.
“The Panthers traded into Round 3 and stopped Corral’s slide at No. 94,” he added. “While the Ole Miss product is a polarizing eval, on and off the field, he offers plus athleticism and the quickest release in this class. Darnold remains the incumbent starter, but Corral’s simple presence on the roster makes this team more interesting. On Day 3, Carolina went FULL RHULE, collecting three freak athletes in Smith, Barno and Barnes, the last of whom ran the second-fastest 40-yard dash in combine history (4.23).”
Hopefully, “FULL RHULE” is a good thing this time around for Carolina.
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