Panthers Could Trade Up For Dillon Thieneman But Should Stand Pat at 19 Instead

There are some prospects that the Carolina Panthers absolutely should trade up for if they find themselves anywhere near the 19th pick. Rueben Bain Jr., Caleb Downs, and Sonny Styles are those prospects.

Otherwise, it's probably not smart to move up. No other prospect that could feasibly be picked in the 14-19 range should be traded up for. The value's not there, especially when there will be good prospects at 19, even if the one they have their eye on is gone.

That's what CBS Sports' Josh Edwards predicts. He mocked the Panthers to trade with the Baltimore Ravens for Dillon Thieneman. At one point, Thieneman was considered an early second-round prospect, but now he's being discussed as a prospect in the top half of the first round.

"If Carolina is hellbent on adding a safety, which is not to say that they are, it may require them trading up a bit to secure one of those prospects. Dillon Thieneman has risen as high in mock draft projections as his vertical jump at the NFL Scouting Combine," Edwards argued.

Another analyst, CBS Sports' Zachary Pereles, disagrees. So do we, and here's why.

The Panthers shouldn't really be interested in trading up in the NFL draft

The Carolina Panthers logo is projected on the video board during the NFL Draft | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Josh Edwards expects that the Panthers will need to move up in order to get Dillon Thieneman, who is rapidly rising the draft boards. That alone is cause for concern. Draft risers can be tricky, and Panthers exec Brandt Tilis doesn't like them.

Moving up for Thieneman isn't wise when there's a good chance he will fall to them at 19. And even if he doesn't, there are prospects of similar stature that could be there. In the mock draft Edwards did, Emmanuel McNeil-Warren was one pick ahead of Carolina and could easily fall.

Kenyon Sadiq, Keldric Faulk, Blake Miller, KC Concepcion, and Omar Cooper Jr. were all still on the board. All of them would've been better picks at 19 than trading up to 14 for Thieneman. The draft capital is too valuable, and Thieneman is not head and shoulders above those five prospects, either.

Zachary Pereles put it like this, "Carolina could add to its pass-catching group or to a defense that is rapidly accumulating talent. After making the playoffs for the first time since 2017, the Panthers don't need to get out over their skis."

Oregon defensive back Dillon Thieneman helps inside linebacker | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

He noted that the Panthers still went just 8-9, so they're not exactly a top-tier contender that can afford to part with draft capital they still need to build with. "A trade back wouldn't be out of the question, either, if someone really wants to move up," he added.

That could be the best move. They could, at least in the mock scenario presented by Edwards, trade back into the mid-20s and select whichever of the prospects mentioned are still there. They'd get a prospect on Thieneman's level and more draft picks, which is always good.

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