Colston Loveland

Panthers To Focus On Defense In Draft

April 12th, 2025 at 2:51pm CST by Ely Allen

We are only five years removed from the 2020 NFL Draft, when then-head coach Matt Rhule and the Panthers went defense with all seven of their draft picks. New head coach Dave Canales seems more willing to let general manager Dan Morgan run the show, but the 2025 NFL Draft may look go similarly. With nine picks, it’s unreasonable to expect all defensive selections, but per ESPN’s David Newton, Carolina has needs all over the defense that could be addressed in two weeks.

While his play has been up-and-down over his first two years, Bryce Young seemingly did enough down the stretch in 2024 to secure another year as the starting quarterback. At running back, the Panthers have two backs who delivered 1,000-yard rushing seasons last year in Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle, and Dowdle provides a bit more receiving potential.

They fully return their offensive line from last year in (from left to right) tackle Ikem Ekwonu, guard Damien Lewis, center Austin Corbett, guard Robert Hunt, and tackle Taylor Moton. They even displayed impressive depth with Cade Mays stepping in at center admirably last season when Corbett went down with injury. Other strong depth pieces on the line include Yosh Nijman, Chandler Zavala, and Brady Christensen, but aside from Corbett, the Panthers only saw seven missed starts along the offensive line in 2024, and Hunt even earned a Pro Bowl bid.

The holes on offense come at wide receiver and tight end. Despite being 34 years old, Adam Thielen hardly showed his age in his starts last season. Unfortunately, injury held him out of seven straight games in the middle of the year. After Diontae Johnson departed on bad terms, Carolina was left to depend on first-round rookie Xavier Legette and undrafted rookie Jalen Coker to lead the receiving corps. At tight end, Tommy Tremble has never really impressed in his receiving or blocking responsibilities since getting drafted in the third round in 2021, but fourth-round rookie Ja’Tavion Sanders struggled to really take the job from Tremble last year, only producing more because Tremble missed five games.

On defense, the Panthers don’t necessarily have holes, but each position either lacks top-end talent or depth. The position in best standing right now is the interior line, where Derrick Brown is set to return as one of the league’s best defensive tackles. He’s been reinforced by two newcomers in Bobby Brown III and Tershawn Wharton who graded out respectably (47th and 49th, respectively, out of 118 players graded by Pro Football Focus) last year with the Rams and Chiefs. While they didn’t grade out very well, A’Shawn Robinson, Shy Tuttle, and LaBryan Ray all add depth to the line.

Cornerback is probably the team’s second-best position right now. Michael Jackson has proven to be a reliable, if unexciting, starter over the past two years, while Jaycee Horn earned a Pro Bowl berth in his first healthy season, though he did miss 29 games in his first three years. Chau Smith-Wade established himself as a serviceable nickelback as a rookie, but besides those three, the Panthers only have unproven corners in Akayleb Evans and Shemar Bartholomew on the roster. Quality depth is desperately needed.

At safety, Carolina sees new starters with Tre’von Moehrig and Nick Scott potentially stepping in in place of Xavier Woods and Jordan Fuller. On paper, these are improvements, and second-year safety Demani Richardson returns after getting some starting experience last year. Once again, though, there is zero depth behind those three, and bodies could be added in the later rounds of the draft for both secondary positions.

Both linebacker positions have plenty of depth but lack top-end talent. Shaq Thompson is still a free agent, so Josey Jewell and Trevin Wallace are the top returners at a position that also added Christian Rozeboom in free agency. There’s plenty of depth pieces behind them, as well. Unfortunately, according to PFF, none of those starters graded better than 67th out of 84 players at the position last year. Jewell (67) and Wallace (69) faired only slightly better than newcomer Rozeboom (72).

At outside linebacker, Jadeveon Clowney is the obvious star of the show, but his resurgent excellence in Baltimore in 2023 didn’t quite continue with the Panthers last year, though he was still the team’s best defender when on the field, slightly edging out Jackson in the secondary. Behind him, D.J. Wonnum, DJ Johnson, and newcomer Patrick Jones follow in the off-ball linebackers’ footsteps, with no one grading better than 94th of 119 players at the position last year, per PFF. Jones last year with the Vikings saw him grade out at 94th, while Wonnum (95) and Johnson (98) weren’t far behind.

The most pressing need for Carolina is probably to add a strong pass rusher across from Clowney. The team may also value a strong addition at inside linebacker or safety. Tight end and wide receiver would likely follow in the order of needs. With the No. 8 overall pick in the draft, the Panthers are in a unique position. They have to keep in mind, though, that their early-second-round pick belongs to the Bears as a result of the D.J. Moore trade from 2023, but they do own the Rams’ second-rounder this year after Los Angeles traded up in the second round last year to select Braden Fiske.

In a perfect world, the Panthers somehow see Georgia’s Jalon Walker fall to them at the eighth spot. The Patriots have been linked to Walker at times, but No. 4 overall may be too high to consider the versatile defender, and New England, like that three teams with picks between it and Carolina, has potentially more pressing needs on offense, so it’s not out of the question that Walker will be available. Walker barely favored an off-ball linebacker role to an edge rusher role about 60:40 in Athens last year. This unique ability to contribute at both spots is reminiscent of Micah Parsons and would give the Panthers an opportunity to play around and figure out where exactly Walker could contribute most to the defense.

If Walker is unavailable, they could try for Texas A&M’s Shemar Stewart, Marshall’s Mike Green, or Walker’s teammate Mykel Williams, but each seems like a bit of a reach at No. 8 overall. Any other linebackers, like Alabama’s Jihaad Campbell or UCLA’s Carson Schwesinger, are fringe first-rounders, and Carolina may be wiser to trade up for them in the second or hope they fall to No. 57 overall. They could also stand pat and select a number of Day 2 receiving options (Iowa State’s Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins, Utah State’s Jalen Royals, Ole Miss’ Tre Harris, TCU’s Jack Bech, Texas’ Isaiah Bond, Stanford’s Elic Ayomanor) in the second or third round.

An interesting scenario could see the Panthers make a move for one of the draft’s two top tight ends: Penn State’s Tyler Warren or Michigan’s Colston Loveland at No. 8 overall. This would be a bit of a shock with so many bigger needs to focus on, but either player paired with Sanders would provide an immediate upgrade over a twosome of Sanders and Tremble. More likely, though, the Panthers stick to defense and choose from one of many impressive tight end options on Day 2 or 3 like LSU’s Mason Taylor, Miami’s Elijah Arroyo, or Bowling Green’s Harold Fannin.

The team could also try to trade down later into the first round if their favorite options aren’t on the table, but they would be one of several teams trying to do so. Without any elite options to trade up for, though, there are few teams interested in trading up into this range of the draft.

Draft Rumors: Carter, Walker, Miami, Loveland

February 26th, 2025 at 8:59pm CST by Ely Allen

The NFL Scouting Combine starts tomorrow, February 27, and will continue through Sunday, March 2. In a prospect pool that has been reportedly devoid of top-end talent but full of starters and contributors, the combine will be a prime opportunity for players to display their most impressive attributes and stand out.

One of the few elite players in the class who does not need to display anything at the combine, Penn State pass rusher Abdul Carter will reportedly not be working out this weekend, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Carter is still recovering from a shoulder injury he suffered in the team’s playoff game versus Boise State, an injury he played through against the Fighting Irish in the following round of the 12-team playoff.

Per Turron Davenport, also of ESPN, Carter claims to be at about 90 percent. Carter’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, has sent a letter to all NFL teams informing them that his client has been cleared to resume training and will be cleared to workout in time for his pro day on March 28.

Here are a few other draft and combine rumors before the event starts tomorrow:

Similarly, Georgia linebacker Jalon Walker will not be working out at the combine, per ESPN’s Katherine Terrell. He is currently working his way back from a quad injury. He plans to workout at his school’s pro day, as well.
We’ve already heard that Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders will not throw at the combine, choosing to focus solely on team interviews, but Jaxson Dart (Ole Miss), Jalen Milroe (Alabama), and Riley Leonard (Notre Dame) will all reportedly throw this weekend, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. A determination has not yet been made for Miami passer Cam Ward, who is expected to challenge for the top pick in the draft with Carter and Sanders.
One of Ward’s top targets in Coral Gables, tight end Elijah Arroyo, will unfortunately not be participating this weekend, per Rapoport. Arroyo made waves at the Senior Bowl as an incredibly athletic mismatch for any defender, linebacker or defensive back. Unfortunately, at the same event, he suffered a knee injury that will hold him out in Indianapolis. He is expected to be ready to workout at his pro day on March 24.
Carter wasn’t the only prospect who had a doctor send a letter on his behalf this week. Notorious sports medicine specialist Dr. Neal Elattrache sent out a letter to all 32 teams claiming that Michigan tight end Colston Loveland will be able to participate in minicamp and will be fully cleared in time for training camp after undergoing shoulder surgery last month, per Schefter. As the letter insinuates, Loveland will be unavailable to work out at the combine or his pro day.
Lastly, we saw one more letter going out, this one from Dr. Daniel Cooper, the surgeon who performed an ACL reconstruction on East Carolina cornerback Shavon Revel back in October. Cooper tells the league that Revel is on schedule to be fully cleared by the summer. Revel will still attend the combine for interviews and medical checks, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.

Michigan TE Colston Loveland Declares For Draft

December 15th, 2024 at 9:58pm CST by Ely Allen

As a sophomore last year, tight end Colston Loveland was celebrating a national championship victory with the rest of his Wolverine teammates. A year later, after a disappointing team effort out of Ann Arbor, Loveland is looking to join a number of those former teammates in the NFL. It was on Instagram that Loveland authored a post announcing that he would forgo his senior year and leave for the 2025 NFL Draft.

The top prospect coming out of the state of Idaho, the Gooding HS alumnus was considered a top 10 tight end as a recruit. Loveland fielded a range of offers from some of the best schools, including Alabama, Auburn, and LSU out of the SEC and Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon State, Colorado, UCLA, and Utah out of what was then the Pac-12. He also pulled obvious offers from in-state Idaho State and Boise State, but ultimately, he opted for the only Big Ten school to offer him, signing with Michigan.

As a true freshman, Loveland played second fiddle to Luke Schoonmaker as TE2. He took over TE1 duties in his sophomore year and was the second-leading receiver on the offense for the national champion Wolverines, finishing behind only Roman Wilson in receiving yards (649) and receiving touchdowns (4) while finishing third in receptions (45). This season, Loveland took over as Michigan’s top receiving option. Despite failing to reach his yardage total from 2023, Loveland led the team in receptions (56), receiving yards (582), and receiving touchdowns (5) by a wide margin.

Those numbers also aren’t near the production put up by some of the more productive tight ends in the NCAA, but that hasn’t stopped draft pundits from listing Loveland as one of the top options, if not the top option, for tight ends coming into the NFL next year. This is reflected in analytics, where Pro Football Focus (subscription required) lists Loveland as the fifth-best tight end in college football this year.

ESPN’s Mel Kiper lists Loveland as the 21st-best overall prospect and the second-best tight end, behind only Penn State’s Tyler Warren, the NCAA’s Mackey Award winner for best tight end in college football this year. Kiper’s colleagues — Jordan Reid, Matt Miller, and Field Yates — rank Loveland at first, second, and first, respectively, flip-flopping spots with Warren. Dane Brugler of The Athletic has Loveland as the 13th-best overall prospect and the top tight end, with Warren slotting in as the 26th-best overall prospect.

It’s clear that Loveland and Warren are viewed as TE1 and TE2 in whichever order for this year’s draft class. The only thing left to determine is where they will fall in the draft come April. Brugler and Kiper seem to be of the mindset that both players are deserving of a first-round pick, but as always, it will be up to general managers around the league to set the draft stock for the tight end position. If any tight ends are going on Day 1, expect to hear one or both of Loveland and Warren’s names.