NFC South · 2026 Draft Class

Carolina Panthers 2026 NFL Draft Class

Every Panthers selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, the needs they entered the weekend with, and the trades that reshaped their board.

Compiled by the NFL Mock Draft Simulator research desk · Front office at the time: Dan Morgan (GM), Dave Canales (HC)

The class

Carolina Panthers made 7 selections in the 2026 draft, opening with Monroe Freeling, a offensive tackle out of Georgia, at No. 19 overall.

The class skewed toward offensive tackle. In total they drafted 7 different positions.

Going into the weekend our board had their priority needs listed as Safety, Linebacker, Interior Offensive Line, Wide Receiver, Edge Rusher, Cornerback. They addressed 5 of their 6 pre-draft needs directly: Safety, Linebacker, Interior Offensive Line, Wide Receiver, Cornerback. Left unaddressed: Edge Rusher.

Their best value relative to the consensus board was Zakee Wheatley at No. 151, 74 slots later than the industry board had him ranked (77).

Draft capital

Panthers draft capital broke down as 1 Day 1 pick, 2 on Day 2 and 4 on Day 3. 5 were slots they did not own when the weekend began, acquired by trade.

Pick by pick

Every Panthers selection, with where it landed against our consensus board and against their own pre-draft needs list.

• Round 1, No. 19: Panthers took Monroe Freeling, within 2 slots of his board ranking of 17. Offensive Tackle was not on their priority needs list, a best-player-available call.
• Round 2, No. 49: Panthers took Lee Hunter on Day 2, within 7 slots of his board ranking of 42. Defensive Tackle was not on their priority needs list, a best-player-available call.
• Round 3, No. 83: Panthers took Chris Brazzell II on Day 2, a board-rank 45 player whom the rest of the league passed on across 38 slots of board value.
• Round 4, No. 129: Panthers took Will Lee III on Day 3, a board-rank 106 player who waited 23 slots past his board ranking to get there.
• Round 5, No. 144: Panthers took Sam Hecht on Day 3, a board-rank 95 player who fell 49 slots below where the consensus had him. Interior Offensive Line was their No. 3 listed need.
• Round 5, No. 151: Panthers took Zakee Wheatley on Day 3, a board-rank 77 player whom the rest of the league passed on across 74 slots of board value. It was their single highest-priority need going in.
• Round 7, No. 227: Panthers spent a late-round flier on Jackson Kuwatch, a board-rank 435 player. Linebacker was their No. 2 listed need.

Pre-draft needs

Our needs assessment for the Panthers going into the 2026 draft, ordered by priority. This is the list the class above is measured against.

Draft-day trades

• With Minnesota Vikings: sent No. 51 (R2), No. 196 (R6); received No. 49 (R2), No. 159 (R5).
• With Jacksonville Jaguars: sent No. 119 (R4), No. 196 (R6); received No. 124 (R4), No. 166 (R5).
• With Chicago Bears: sent No. 124 (R4), No. 166 (R5); received No. 129 (R4), No. 144 (R5).
• With Miami Dolphins: sent No. 158 (R5), No. 200 (R6); received No. 151 (R5), No. 227 (R7).

Related

• Round 1 results: every other pick made around the Panthers' first selection.
• Position rankings for the groups they drafted: Offensive Tackle, Defensive Tackle, Wide Receiver, Cornerback, Interior Offensive Line, Safety, Linebacker.
• The 2026 consensus big board: where every one of these players ranked before the draft.
• Every trade from the 2026 draft: the full ledger, including the Panthers' moves.
• Steals and reaches: which picks diverged most from the board, and what that gap means.
• The draft by the numbers: positional supply, school production and how draft capital was distributed.

More on the Panthers

The Carolina Panthers franchise hub carries the current front office and needs, plus every other class we cover.