Mykel Williams

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.

49ers To Host Mykel Williams, Walter Nolen

April 8th, 2025 at 1:00pm CST by Adam La Rose

The 49ers own the No. 11 pick in April’s draft, and they are set to host a pair of defenders who could be selected in that range. Edge rusher Mykel Williams and defensive tackle Walter Nolen will visit the team, Matt Barrows of The Athletic reports.

Williams spent each of his three years at Georgia, earning second-team All-SEC honors in 2023 and ’24. The former five-star recruit faced high expectations during his time with the Bulldogs, but his production did not meet them. Williams totaled only 14.5 sacks in his career, with an ankle injury hindering his play this past campaign. In spite of that, his size, length and athleticism has him squarely on the first-round radar.

The 6-5, 260-pounder has already lined up visits with the Saints and Cardinals during the pre-draft process. Williams is also among the players who have been closely linked to the Panthers, who will pick eighth overall. Depending on how the board shakes out – especially with respect to the other top edge rushers in the class – the 49ers may not have the option of selecting him.

Nolan was one of several prospects who took part in “Dallas Day,” showcasing some of the top players from the area in April’s draft. He too has a number of pre-draft visits on the books. The No. 1 player in his recruiting class, Nolan spent his first two seasons at Texas A&M. He managed five sacks over that span, but it was a transfer to Ole Miss which led to a notable breakout campaign.

Racking up 6.5 sacks and 14 tackles for loss, the junior earned first-team All-SEC and All-American honors during his lone Rebels season. Nolan was also a finalist for the Outland Trophy, awarded to the country’s top offensive or defensive lineman. The 6-4, 296-pounder’s potential is certainly high as he prepares to transition to the pro game, but opinions vary to large extent as it pertains to his draft stock.

Aside from Nick Bosa, the 49ers have undergone plenty of changes along the defensive front in recent years. The releases of Javon Hargrave and Leonard Floyd from earlier this spring have led to a starting vacancy on the interior and also along the edge. Either Williams or Nolan could therefore step into a notable role as a rookie, and it will be interesting to see if one or both are on the board when San Francisco’s first selection is made.

Cardinals To Meet With James Pearce, Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams

April 5th, 2025 at 9:50am CST by Sam Robinson

The Cardinals let Chandler Jones walk in free agency during the 2022 offseason, and they lost all-time great J.J. Watt and eventual All-Pro Zach Allen in 2023. Arizona did not come especially close to picking up the pieces during the 2023 and ’24 seasons, but the team’s offseason has acknowledged the need for a better pass rush.

After re-signing trade pickup Baron Browning, the Cardinals reunited Jonathan Gannon with Josh Sweat. PFR’s No. 2-ranked free agent joined the team on a four-year, $76.4MM deal. It does not appear the Cards are content with Browning, Zaven Collins and BJ Ojulari as Sweat’s complementary pieces, as some high-profile “30” visits are on tap.

Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams and James Pearce Jr. are set to meet with the team, according to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo. Dennis Gardeck‘s six-sack season in 2023 represents Arizona’s highwater mark post-Watt, with converted ILB Collins leading the way with just five in 2024.

The Cards extended Collins last year, giving the former Steve Keim-era first-round pick a two-year, $14MM deal. Collins is signed through 2026, but nothing is guaranteed beyond this season. L.J. Collier is also back, but the ex-Seahawks first-round EDGE is on a one-year, $3MM accord that comes with $1.5MM guaranteed, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. A $1MM incentive package is included in Collier’s second Cards contract.

With Sweat headlining this group, the Cardinals have the makings of a far more formidable pass rush — one that includes 2024 first-round D-lineman Darius Robinson — compared to recent years, but their “30” visits indeed point to a strong interest in making another high-level investment to strengthen its pressure cadre. It would almost definitely take a first-round pick to land Walker, Williams or Pearce. The Cardinals hold the No. 16 overall pick.

Walker sits fifth on Daniel Jeremiah’s latest NFL.com big board, making it rather unlikely he falls to No. 16. While last year’s draft seeing no defender go in the top 14 brought an early imbalance, an abundance of quarterback selections made that possible. No QB run is expected beyond Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders this year, which will likely see this draft’s top non-Abdul Carter defenders go earlier.

A backup during Georgia’s 2022 national championship-winning season, Walker began to play a bigger role in the latter slate. Over the past two seasons, Walker combined for 11.5 sacks. Last season, he posted 11 tackles for loss en route to All-American acclaim. Walker has experience on and off the ball, which is rather familiar territory for a Cardinals team that drafted both Collins and Haason Reddick.

Respectively sitting 22nd and 26th on Jeremiah’s board, Williams and Pearce may well be available at No. 16. A Walker Georgia teammate, Williams played more than his slightly higher-regarded teammate as a freshman and closed his college career with 14 sacks in three seasons. Williams finished with nine TFLs and two forced fumbles in 2024. He earned second-team All-SEC honors last year but played through a sprained ankle during his final Bulldogs slate. Pearce was more productive than either, combining for 17.5 sacks from 2023-24; this included an SEC-leading 10 in ’23. The Saints (No. 9 overall) have also come up as a potential Pearce suitor.

The Panthers, who boast a bigger EDGE need compared to the Cardinals, also met with Walker, ESPN.com’s David Newton notes. Carolina holds the No. 8 overall pick. The NFC South team also has seen Williams connections form. Although the Panthers made an addition here, Patrick Jones does not quite move the needle like Sweat does. The team is still searching for a Brian Burns successor, whereas the Cards spent to hope Sweat can deliver Chandler Jones-like production.

2025 NFL Draft Rumors: Saints, Packers, Falcons, Revel

March 27th, 2025 at 10:13pm CST by Ely Allen

The Saints continue to stay busy having visits with 2025 NFL Draft prospects, according to multiple reports from Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football.

Last night, the team hosted several Georgia players for dinner, including a top defensive end prospect in Mykel Williams as well as wide receiver Arian Smith. They also reportedly had dinner this week with Pittsburgh tight end Gavin Bartholomew, a likely Day 3 prospect whose name has not been making the rounds this early in the process. Lastly, the team was in Knoxville today reportedly meeting with some Tennessee players, including running back Dylan Sampson and defensive tackle Omarr Norman-Lott.

Underhill adds that the team has been doing a ton of work during the pre-draft process on running backs. Even though lead back Alvin Kamara had a career-high 950 rushing yards in 2024, combined with 543 receiving yards, the sheer depth of this year’s class of running back prospects nearly ensures that quality backs will be available into the fourth or fifth round. Dane Brugler of The Athletic has eight running backs listed in his top 100 prospects list, so it makes sense that New Orleans is doing its homework on the position.

Here are a few other rumors concerning possibilities in the 2025 NFL Draft:

The Packers currently have eight picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, but if general manager Brian Gutekunst has anything to say about it, they could be angling for more. According to Matt Schneidman of The Athletic, when asked about not having many picks this year, Gutekunst added the addendum “yet” to the end of the statement, indicating that he would have some interest in acquiring more picks via trade. Green Bay currently sits at No. 23 overall in the first round. It’s been posited that many teams from pick No. 20 on are looking to trade back out of the first round due to a lack of elite, top-end talent in this year’s class, as opposed to the tremendous depth the class seems to provide. Unfortunately, due to that same issue, there are going to be few, if any, takers willing to give up precious draft capital to move up into the first round.
One trend we seem to be seeing shows the Falcons as likely candidates to go defense in the first round of the draft. Josh Kendall of The Athletic selected safety Nick Emmanwori in the site’s beat writer mock draft, and the other players he says he considered with the pick, safety Malaki Starks, linebackers Jalon Walker and Jihaad Campbell, cornerback Will Johnson, and edges Mike Green and Shemar Stewart, all reside on the defensive side of the ball. Kendall bases this belief that the team will go defense off of new defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich wanting to build a new, uniquely hybrid defense.
Lastly, Ryan Fowler of The Draft Network reported today that the Cowboys will be hosting East Carolina cornerback Shavon Revel for a top-30 visit next week. We know that Revel is attempting to make a comeback from a torn ACL that ended his final collegiate season after only three games and that he is projected to be back in time for training camp. What makes this an interesting visit is that, according to Clarence Hill Jr. of All City DLLS, Revel’s ACL repair surgery was performed by Cowboys team doctor Dan Cooper, likely giving the franchise a uniquely exclusive insight on his prognosis and recovery.

Panthers Interested In OLB Mykel Williams?

March 23rd, 2025 at 3:21pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Panthers have not done much to add along the edge so far this offseason. Patrick Jones represents the only free agent signing so far, and while further moves could be coming the draft looms as a means of making a long-term investment.

Carolina owns the No. 8 pick in next month’s draft, and the flashes shown by second-year quarterback Bryce Young and the team’s offense at the end of last season led the team to focus on defensive additions earlier this month. Deals for the likes of safety Tre’von Moehrig along with defensive linemen Tershawn Wharton and Bobby Brown should help the Panthers improve the league’s worst total and scoring defense from 2024.

With little having taken place on the open market regarding the edge rush group, the likes of Jadeveon Clowney and D.J. Wonnum will remain key figures in that regard. Jones – who notched a career-high seven sacks last season – will also be counted on to improve Carolina’s 32 sacks from 2024. A number of options will be on the board when the Panthers use their first selection in the draft, though.

With that in mind, Joe Person of The Athletic writes Carolina has a “real interest” in Mykel Williams (subscription required). The Georgia product is one of several edge rushers viewed as strong candidates to be selected in the first round, and he will be among the top options left when Abdul Carter hears his name called (which will no doubt happen before the Panthers are on the clock barring a trade up the order). Williams is among the prospects likely to be considered at No. 8, Tony Pauline of Sportskeeda adds.

A former five-star recruit, Williams’ size (6-5, 260 pounds) and athleticism give him some of the highest upside amongst edge rushers in the 2025 class. He posted 4.5 sacks in each of his first two seasons with the Bulldogs, but a lingering ankle injury limited his production in 2024. Williams recorded five sacks and nine tackles for loss, figures short of what many other Day 1 prospects managed but enough for a second-team All-SEC nod. Still, a top-10 selection will be on the table if Carolina’s interest in him holds through the rest of the pre-draft process.

Pauline’s latest mock draft (along with that of ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr.) has the Panthers looking to Georgia with their top pick but instead selecting hybrid linebacker/edge rusher Jalon Walker. He will be worth watching closely as Carolina continues to line up top-30 visits over the coming days, but the same is also true of Williams.

Georgia Defensive Stars Declare For Draft

January 12th, 2025 at 11:05pm CST by Ely Allen

Stop me if you’ve heard this story before, but the University of Georgia is set to produce multiple first-round picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, specifically on the defensive side of the ball. Bulldogs linebacker Jalon Walker, safety Malaki Starks, and pass rusher Mykel Williams all took to social media last week to announce their declarations to enter the draft. All three players were five-star recruits in an incredible 2022 signing class for the Dawgs, with Williams ranking as the 10th highest rated signee in school history at the time.

Walker, out of Salisbury HS (NC), was 247Sports’ third-best linebacker and 26th-best overall recruit in the class. As a true freshman, Walker played sparingly on special teams and as a reserve insider linebacker. While getting slightly more time as a reserve insider linebacker in his sophomore campaign, Walker still found a way to lead the team with five sacks. Finally earning a full-time starting role as a junior, Walker set a career high in tackles (60) while leading the team with more career highs in tackles for loss (11) and sacks (6.5). Walker was awarded the Butkus Award for the nation’s best linebacker this year.

Now, Walker is almost certainly going to be a first-round draft pick, the only question remaining is: at what position? ESPN’s Mel Kiper and Field Yates and The Athletic’s Dane Brugler all view Walker as the top off-ball linebacker in the draft, with Kiper and Brugler rating him as the ninth- and seventh-best prospect, respectively, overall, touting his sideline-to-sideline capabilities with his elite pass rushing abilities adding versatility to his portfolio. ESPN’s Matt Miller and Jordan Reid, though, have Walker ranking third amongst edge rushers alongside Williams, predicting that Walker’s elite pass rushing ability will land him as an outside linebacker or defensive end in the NFL.

Williams, out of Hardaway HS (GA), was even higher ranked than Walker coming out of high school, with 247Sports listing him as the second-best defensive lineman and the seventh-best overall recruit in the nation. After an initial commitment to USC, Williams made a flip late in his senior year, deciding to go to Athens, instead.

As a true freshman, Williams led the team in sacks (4.5) despite only making two starts in 15 appearances of the team’s championship campaign. While Walker led the team in that stat each of the past two years, Williams was second on the team in both 2023 (4.5) and 2024 (5.0). Williams started 10 of 13 games as a sophomore, but after failing to take much of a step forward, Williams would only earn five starts this season, getting out-snapped by players like Chaz Chambliss, Damon Wilson Jr., and Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins.

We’ve seen plenty examples before to show that physical tools and potential can easily outweigh a lack of production in college, and that seems to be the case with Williams. Despite his inability to show more consistency and production at Georgia, Williams’ speed, power, and bend are viewed as top-tier traits that could make him a scary weapon on an NFL defense. Kiper and his colleagues and Brugler consistently have Williams ranked as the second- or third-best pass rusher in the draft behind only Penn State’s Abdul Carter and sometimes behind Tennessee’s James Pearce Jr. Kiper lists Williams as the 16th-best overall prospect, while Brugler slots him up at eighth.

Perhaps saving the best for last, Starks was the jewel of Georgia’s recruiting class that year out of Jefferson HS (GA), ranking as the top athlete and the fourth-best overall prospect, according to 247Sports. Starks made the biggest impact of the three as a freshman, starting 14 of 15 contests. In the championship-winning campaign, Starks tied for the team-lead in passes defensed (7) while finishing second on the team with two interceptions. He finished second in both categories as a sophomore, as well, with three interceptions and seven more passes defensed. While his ball-hawking took a backseat this past season, Starks took the team-lead in another category with 77 total tackles.

While Kiper lists Starks below Walker as the 13th best overall prospect in the draft, he and his colleagues all list Starks as the top safety prospect in the class. Brugler has Starks ranked as the fourth-best overall prospect. Starks projects so highly because of his high football intelligence and his versatile ability to make plays all over the field. He has a build closer to that of a Brian Branch than a Kyle Hamilton, but he possesses the ability both pros have to make tackles in the box, close quickly in coverage, and finish plays with good hands. It may take him a moment to live up to that comparison, but the potential is absolutely there.

While there has been a large number of perceived “busts” out of Georgia in the last few years, Starks, Walker, and Williams won’t be coasting off of the boosts often applied to winners of a national championship like Travon Walker, Quay Walker, Devonte Wyatt, and Lewis Cine, who perhaps have not lived up to their relative draft stock. Regardless, Georgia is on a three-year streak of producing multiple first-round picks, and that trend will likely continue as Starks, Walker, and Williams prepare for April.