rdwoodring'S MOCK DRAFT

rdwoodring'S MOCK DRAFT
RUN ON FEB 1, 2026

Another Mock

  • rdwoodring DRAFTING FOR THE
    Panthers
Draft Selections
Arvell Reese Head Shot
PICK: 26 RND: 1 (CAR)
Arvell Reese
LB Ohio State
Dillon Thieneman Head Shot
PICK: 51 RND: 2 (CAR)
Dillon Thieneman
S Oregon
Jacob Rodriguez Head Shot
PICK: 68 RND: 3 (CAR)
Jacob Rodriguez
LB Texas Tech
Omar Cooper Jr. Head Shot
PICK: 83 RND: 3 (CAR)
Omar Cooper Jr.
WR Indiana
D'Angelo Ponds Head Shot
PICK: 104 RND: 4 (CAR)
D'Angelo Ponds
CB Indiana
Jalon Kilgore Head Shot
PICK: 119 RND: 4 (CAR)
Jalon Kilgore
S South Carolina
Taylen Green Head Shot
PICK: 126 RND: 4 (CAR)
Taylen Green
QB Arkansas
Pat Coogan Head Shot
PICK: 156 RND: 5 (CAR)
Pat Coogan
C Indiana
Ted Hurst Head Shot
PICK: 157 RND: 5 (CAR)
Ted Hurst
WR Georgia State
Bud Clark Head Shot
PICK: 181 RND: 6 (CAR)
Bud Clark
S TCU
Jordan Hall Head Shot
PICK: 235 RND: 7 (CAR)
Jordan Hall
DL Georgia
Draft Picks Received
Arvell Reese Head Shot
PICK: 26 RND: 1 (BUF)
Arvell Reese
LB Ohio State
Jacob Rodriguez Head Shot
PICK: 68 RND: 3 (PHI)
Jacob Rodriguez
LB Texas Tech
D'Angelo Ponds Head Shot
PICK: 104 RND: 4 (ARI)
D'Angelo Ponds
CB Indiana
Taylen Green Head Shot
PICK: 126 RND: 4 (BUF)
Taylen Green
QB Arkansas
Bud Clark Head Shot
PICK: 181 RND: 6 (ARI)
Bud Clark
S TCU
Draft Picks Traded
Makai Lemon Head Shot
PICK: 19 RND: 1 (BUF)
Makai Lemon
WR USC
Trebor Pena Head Shot
PICK: 198 RND: 6 (ARI)
Trebor Pena
WR Penn State
Players traded away
Head Shot
Xavier Legette
WR
Draft Grade — Panthers
Overall C
ValueB NeedB+ TradesF FutureB-
A costly weekend of dealing drags the Panthers to a C.

The war room fell hard for Taylen Green, and it showed at slot 126: 40 picks ahead of a board that had other ideas. The final tally is a middling C.

Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere. Landing Reese that late papers over a lot of smaller sins. The edge rusher spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at.

So much rides on Arvell Reese that the real verdict is a season or two away.

Pick Analysis
Pick26 Rnd1 Arvell Reese
In pick No. 26 they get a green-dot type in the middle at a price that makes it sweeter. The biggest hole, addressed.
Pick51 Rnd2 Dillon Thieneman
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Dillon Thieneman at the Round 2 slot is the proof. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Pick68 Rnd3 Jacob Rodriguez
Jacob Rodriguez in the 68th pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Pick83 Rnd3 Omar Cooper Jr.
Nothing to complain about; Omar Cooper Jr. went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Pick104 Rnd4 D'Angelo Ponds
No drama and no debate, D'Angelo Ponds went about where he belonged in pick 104. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Pick119 Rnd4 Jalon Kilgore
They read the board right and Jalon Kilgore was the payoff at No. 119. It fills a real need, too.
Pick126 Rnd4 Taylen Green
This one needs a full-page explanation: Taylen Green in slot 126, miles early. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Pick156 Rnd5 Pat Coogan
A reach for Pat Coogan in pick No. 156; a little patience would have been rewarded. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Pick157 Rnd5 Ted Hurst
Ted Hurst at pick 157 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Pick181 Rnd6 Bud Clark
Bud Clark in the Round 6 slot is fair value, right on his grade. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Pick235 Rnd7 Jordan Hall
They went early on Jordan Hall in Round 7, Pick 19, and the value did not follow. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.