Panthers mock draft roundup 8.0: Tracking the latest 2026 projections

Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales may have hinted at his team's draft approach two weeks ago—from the NFL's Annual League Meeting in Phoenix, Ariz. Here's what he told Joe Person of The Athletic . .

. We're changing things in our offense to fit Bryce [Young], and we're trying to bring players that will complement what Bryce does. It was something that Dan and I had talked about throughout really the last two years - Bryce's ability to perform in critical situations and in high-stakes situations.

And feeling our responsibility to build a team that puts itself in those high-stakes moments where he can perform and come through. And he's shown that, whether it's my ability to be aggressive, going for it on fourth down because of him or having different moments come alive late in games for him to be able to take us down on drives, find wins, whatever that looked like. There's not a question of if, but how - how are we gonna build this forward knowing that Bryce is our quarterback?

The build could continue in the first round of this year's selection process, where Canales and the Panthers hold the 19th overall pick. And based off some of the recent mocks from around the web, Young may be in line for yet another new weapon this season. Here, starting off with a few hog mollies, is our latest mock draft roundup for Carolina: USA Today Pick: Spencer Fano, OL, Utah Author : Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz Take : With Rasheed Walker signed to a one-year deal on the cheap, Carolina has enough of a contingency plan at left tackle should Ikem Ekwonu need a good bit of time to make his way back from a torn patellar tendon.