With day two of the NFL Draft complete let’s go over the three players the Carolina Panthers selected. With the 40th pick in the draft, the Panthers selected wide receiver Curtis Samuel from Ohio State. Last season, Samuel scored 15 touchdowns through the air and ground and grabbed 74 receptions which is second in Ohio State history. Was mainly a running back at Ohio State, could be used at either wide receiver or running back and can also return punt/kick-off returns. Samuel did say in an interview that he will play primarily slot receiver for Carolina. His strengths are having great speed and quick feet isn’t afraid of contact especially for his size (5’11”) and is a reliable option on special teams in the return game. His weaknesses are that he is new to being a wide receiver, need to tighten up his route running to reach his full potential as a wideout. Also, needs to work on catching the ball with his hands other than with his chest. Overall, I was surprised with this pick thought the Panthers would draft a safety with the pick but after reading up on Samuels and the fact that we need playmakers on offense, I like this pick. I would compare him to Ted Ginn Jr. or Philly Brown, small but can burn the opposing defense. Samuel and McCaffrey just gave Cam two new explosive playmakers to work with. Going to be a very different offense compare to last season.
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With the 64th pick in NFL draft, the Carolina Panthers select offensive lineman Taylor Moton from Western Michigan. Will complete at right tackle. Has strong upper body, does a good job anchoring down and stabbing rushers in pass protection. Played great in the senior bowl. Great at controlling blocks, steering defenders the way he wants, strong combine showed off his movement skills. Does struggling from time to time with wider rushers and can improve his pass protection against skilled rushers. Overall, Carolina needed to get depth at offense-line, since Cam has been constantly hit in his NFL career and the uncertainty of Michael Oher who is still under the concussion protocol. Moton can help fix that problem a lot as experts have said that Moton is one of the best O-lineman in this year draft.
Panthers traded their 3rd and 4th round picks (98th and 115th) for Arizona Cardinals 77th pick to draft defense end Daeshon Hall from Texas A&M. Two-year starter at Texas A&M lined up primarily at left defense end (opposite to Garrett at right). Hall is tall, long athlete generates terrific momentum from his initial get-off to win the corner. Never missed a game in a four-year career, including 26 straight starts as a junior and senior. Does need to bulk up for his positions and can take too wide in his rush. Pass rush stalls if an initial move doesn't work, lacking effective counter maneuvers. Personally, I thought the Panthers needed to draft a defensive end at some point in this draft since two of our defense ends are old and slow. And it not surprising that Gettleman drafted a defense end since he loves drafting defense. Hall can learn a lot from Charles Johnston and Julies Peppers which can help him develop at the professional level.
The Panthers remaining picks are a 5th rounder (152), 6th rounder (192) and a 7th rounder (233). And make sure to check back here tomorrow night where I will talk about the Panthers moves on the last day of the draft. Also, tell me what you thought of the moves the Panthers made on day 2 of 2017 NFL draft? Are you happy who they drafted or should they have drafted someone else? Tell me in the comment section below!
