4 Late-Round Sleepers the Panthers Can’t Afford to Miss in the NFL Draft

The Panthers should have their eye on these non-premier prospects next week.

Florida Gators offensive lineman Austin Barber (58) walks on the field | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Next week, the Carolina Panthers will have a new draft class coming to town. The focus will be on the top players selected, primarily those in the first three rounds, because they'll probably have the most impact.

But we should not forget that some late-round prospects in 2025 were highly impactful, including Mitchell Evans and Jimmy Horn Jr. Who could be this year's version of those gems? Here are a few options the Panthers should try not to miss out on.

Logan Jones, Iowa C

Iowa Hawkeyes offensive lineman Logan Jones (65) celebrates a touchdown | Ross Harried-Imagn Images

The Panthers have a short-term solution at center in Luke Fortner, but he's only on a one-year deal. They've punted the issue to 2027, but that's where the draft comes in. Despite being ESPN's 99th-ranked prospect, i.e. perfect for a third or fourth-round pick, Logan Jones is the third-best center.

He tested well at the Combine and has plenty of starting experience, so the Panthers could snag him and develop him behind Fortner as the succession plan.

Austin Barber, Florida OT

Similar to the center problem, the Panthers will have a major issue at tackle in the future, too. Rasheed Walker and Ikem Ekwonu (currently injured) are free agents after this season. Taylor Moton is after the next.

They should be focusing on a tackle at some point, and Austin Barber is an ideal late-round pick that could develop behind Moton and Walker in 2026 and start in 2027. The Panthers seem to agree, as they hosted him on a top-30 visit already.

Chris McClellan, Missouri IDL

The Panthers need depth up front on defense, especially after losing A'Shawn Robinson. Football can often be won and lost in the trenches, and having a good defensive front is in Carolina's DNA. Picking someone on the defensive line is a good plan.

But spending premium draft capital there is not, since it's a depth issue. Drafting Chris McClellan, who the Panthers already met with, in the fourth round is a great idea. McClellan is a longtime SEC player, so he's been up against the best of the best, and he had six sacks in 2025.

Kaleb Elarms-Orr, TCU LB

The Panthers still need a linebacker, if for no other reason than to avoid what happened in 2025. They ended up playing special teamers as starting linebackers in key games. That can't happen again, so depth and a potential upgrade over Trevin Wallace should be a priority.

This is a deep linebacker class, and the Panthers like Jacob Rodriguez and Anthony Hill Jr. But later on, they could snag TCU linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr, who they met with. He earned first-team All-Big 12 honors last season and could be a fifth-round steal.