Old North Banter
Fansided

Carolina Panthers: A Surprising Consensus Emerges

By John Woodcock

Nov 12, 2016; Honolulu, HI, USA; Boise State Broncos linebacker Tanner Vallejo (20) pulls down Hawaii Warriors tight end Dakota Torres (86) during the first quarter of the college football game at Aloha Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marco Garcia-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 12, 2016; Honolulu, HI, USA; Boise State Broncos linebacker Tanner Vallejo (20) pulls down Hawaii Warriors tight end Dakota Torres (86) during the first quarter of the college football game at Aloha Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marco Garcia-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Carolina Panthers are closing in on a likely decision at number eight, but is that the only common agreement?

Since 1995 the Carolina Panthers have not only been my team, they have been my hometown team. That means the Charlotte Observer has been my hometown paper. The writers have come and gone, most recently Jonathan Jones moving on to Sports Illustrated. That leaves Joe Person and Jourdan Rodrigue as the current Panthers beat writers over there.

Both recently came out with their Panthers mock drafts, and I naturally headed over there to compare them to my own. For the most part, they are nothing alike. I don’t think a lot of Panthers’ fans share my admiration for Pitt’s James Conner (unless they’re PITT Panthers fans). The same positions appear, but they appear at different spots with different names attached. There are two interesting consistencies to consider however.

One is the guy at number eight. All three mock drafts have the Panthers picking Christian McCaffrey at that spot. There is no need to also say that the rationales are not that far apart either. David Newton of ESPN noted that 10 of the 15 mock drafts he consulted also had McCaffrey. While I would like to think that mine was one of them, I tend to believe that means that we can say at least 13 of 18 mock drafts now say that thing. Of course, Mr. Newton was early on the McCaffrey wagon, I was more or less talked into it.

More from Old North Banter

That one similarity might have been enough. However there was a second similarity as well. The two beat writers and I all had the Panthers taking linebacker Tanner Vallejo of Boise State in the fifth or sixth round. I was looking for flexible linebacker depth. Person went for the fifth round because A.J. Klein and David Mayo came from there. Rodrigue noted that Vallejo was the linebacker the Panthers had a visit with, showing their interest.

Next: Panthers To Trade For Veteran?

So not only is it probable that McCaffrey will be the first rounder, we can now be certain that Vallejo will be a Panther too. Just on Saturday, not tonight. Enjoy the draft, we will be here ready to cover any North Carolina related stuff that happens tonight whether it be trades, the Panthers pick, or Mitch Trubisky’s landing spot. Draft action starts at 8:00 PM on ESPN or the NFL Network.

Home/Carolina Panthers