McShay's Two-Round Mock Has the Panthers Going in a Different Direction at No. 39

Yeah, I don't know about this one, Todd.

It's C.J. Stroud vs Bryce Young for the top pick in the draft, which should come as no surprise. At No. 39, the Carolina Panthers will shift their focus to drafting a receiver or a pass rusher. Well, maybe not...

In Todd McShay's latest two-round mock draft on ESPN, he has the Panthers going in a completely different direction. Here is who he has Carolina taking at No. 1 and 39 along with his explanation as to why and my analysis of his projection.

No. 1: QB C.J. Stroud, Ohio State

We know the Panthers are drafting a quarterback -- they have been searching for a long-term fix and sent a big bag of assets to Chicago to jump up here in order to find it -- but we still don't know for sure

which

quarterback they want. We might not have the answer until the pick is announced, and I'm not sure Carolina even knows just yet. I projected Alabama's Bryce Young here in my last mock draft, but I'm going with Stroud this time around. It could really go either way.

Stroud is the best pocket passer in the class, with outstanding accuracy to every level and a really good feel for reading the field. His 88.9 Total QBR last season was second in the country, and he threw 41 touchdown passes to just six interceptions. He should be an immediate upgrade and could have the Panthers challenging for the NFC South title in short order. But I'd like to see Carolina add a little more around him. It signed Adam Thielen, DJ Chark, and Miles Sanders, but the trade up to No. 1 cost the team DJ Moore.

My analysis: Spot on. For me, Stroud is the pick. He's extremely accurate, has played well in big-time games (Georgia), and has something Bryce Young doesn't - size. Going all the way back to October, I've said Stroud is QB1 in this class and I haven't seen anything on film that has me second-guessing. 

No. 39: OL O'Cyrus Torrence, Florida

Let's get Stroud some protection on the interior. Torrence allowed just two sacks over 47 starts -- many of which came at Louisiana before transferring -- and he rarely gives up ground to pass-rushers. He'd also help open things up for Miles Sanders in the run game, as he shows the ability to control linemen and move them laterally.

My analysis: Eh...don't get me wrong, Torrence is a great player. But there's no chance in you know what that he's making it out of the first round. Even if he does, I don't believe Carolina will be looking to add to the offensive line in round two, especially when it's not necessarily a need. Austin Corbett and Brady Christensen are the two guards heading into next year and they played well a year ago. I know they're both recovering from injuries they sustained in Week 18 but they appear to be on the right track. Fitterer needs to focus on a receiver or pass rusher here.

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