2. RB Christian McCaffrey
The value: Derrick Henry forcing defenders to make business decisions is undeniably fun to watch. McCaffrey is the best back in the NFL at this moment, though. He’s coming off one of the greatest seasons anyone at the position has ever had, totaling 2,392 yards from scrimmage and 19 touchdowns. McCaffrey is also just 23 years old, so he has plenty of quality football ahead of him.
Given what we know about paying running backs huge contracts, now might just be the perfect time to sell high and maximize their return. If the Panthers can pin a RB-needy team down and get them to offer up a high pick for McCaffrey, they’d have to at least consider it.
The catch: The Panthers only won five games last year and if McCaffrey hadn’t been involved there’s a very real possibility they’d have gone 0-16. With an unfortunate situation at quarterback, McCaffrey carried Carolina’s offense as well as any back could. Trading him now might get a massive return in capital. It would also take away the team’s most productive playmaker. That’s a hard sell for a fanbase that’s already lost Olsen and Kuechly. At the end of the day, this is still a business and McCaffrey will sell tickets. It would come as a shock if they actually deal him.
CB James Bradberry // RB Christian McCaffrey // QB Cam Newton