Analyst lays out how Carolina Panthers should approach free agency, 2026 NFL draft

The Carolina Panthers aren't done yet with the NFL in 2025, and they may yet cause some serious headaches for the NFC's elite contenders. However, looking ahead there are some clear roster issues that will need to be addressed this coming offseason.

At the top of the list, the Panthers have to address their pass rush rotation, as they're about to finish near the bottom of the league in sacks for the fourth consecutive season.

Carolina's defense also desperately needs help at inside linebacker, where Trevin Wallace and Christian Rozeboom are regularly overwhelmed in the absence of Josey Jewell, who was supposed to the this team's defensive centerpiece.

Finding more weapons for Bryce Young also has to be on the list, but cleaning up that defensive front-seven has to come first. How should they go about it?

According to a new mock draft from Matt Johnson at Sportsnaut, the Panthers should hit their linebacker need first in free agency, then attack the edge in Round 1 of the 2026 NFL draft. He has them taking Auburn's Keldric Faulk at No. 16 overall.

Keldric Faulk mocked to Panthers

"Off-ball linebacker is perhaps more of a need for the Carolina Panthers, but there will be some very good ones (Quay Walker and Devin Lloyd) available in NFL free agency. That’s why we think Carolina should take a pass rusher with its first-round pick. While Keldric Faulk wasn’t one of the most productive edge rushers in college football this past season, he was the season prior, and his physical tools suggest he can be an above-average starter with the right coaching."

On paper Faulk (6-foot-6, 288 pounds) appears to be exacly what Carolina's defense needs: a true partner in crime to line up and wreak havoc from the edge. In 37 games at Auburn he's totaled 10 sacks, 19.5 tackles for a loss, six pass breakups and 109 combined tackles.

Keldric Faulk highlights

Finding an experienced off-ball linebacker to start in free agency then hitting up the pass rush need in the draft appears to be the best way forward.

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