Panthers Reveal Why They Made Flurry of NFL Draft Trades

The Panthers were busy at the 2024 NFL Draft, making a flurry of trades that wound up landing a promising rookie class led by WR Xavier Legette and RB Jonathon Brooks.

Carolina clearly wanted to improve the offense. New executive vice president of football operations Brandt Tilis and general manager Dan Morgan recently explained the logic behind the frequent trades.

For a rebuilding team like the Panthers, accumulating as many draft picks as possible over the next few years is important. The front office saw an opportunity to add picks while still getting the player they wanted, so Carolina pounced.

Panthers Explain Logic Behind Second-Round NFL Draft Trades

"Brooks was another guy we had conviction on," Morgan explained after the team snagged Legette. "We didn't want to lose out on him."

The team was prepared to draft Brooks at No. 39, but then the Rams offered a fifth-rounder and a 2025 second-round pick on top of the 52nd selection. "The Rams came in and offered what they did," noted Tillis. "It was, frankly, too good to pass up."

While the front office was concerned about losing Brooks, they quickly got to work on getting back in his range. The Panthers ultimately sent the 52nd pick, their own fifth and the fifth they got from the Rams to the Colts for the 46th pick, which they used to take the former Texas Longhorn star.

"It’s not like we did anything that was so smart or great or whatever," continued Tillis."We were just willing to take a larger risk to get that outcome of the trade."

Brooks is expected to take over as the lead running back at some point this season, and it's obvious how much conviction the Panthers had on the talented player. Alongside Bryce Young and Legette, Brooks forms a core trio for Carolina to build around offensively.

It required some shrewd draft tactics to get these transactions done, but now the Panthers have a foundation and an extra 2025 second-round pick as a reward.

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