Running Back
Questions To Answer: Can the Panthers find a backup to take snaps away from Christian McCaffrey after he played more than 91% of them last season? Will the Panthers use that backup if they draft one?
What They Said: “It’s the extra stuff that you see that you want to eliminate. He may come in and he’s pass protecting, he may come in in a situation where he’s running a specific route that’s not a primary; it’s just something to give him a [rest] and take little bit of the load off of him…The guy played over 90% of the snaps and we have to be smart about that with him. The hard part about it is there’s so much RPO and so much zone-read that there’s always that chance that he’s going to get the ball and he’s shown you with the ball in his hands, he’s going to be productive.” – Ron Rivera on finding rest for McCaffrey.
Possible Pick & Analysis: Day 3 or priority free agency. It would be unusual for the Panthers to select anyone in the first two days of the draft at running back unless they have them as so much of a value they just can’t pass them up – it wouldn’t seem as if a backup running back will get that much usage and the team already went out and re-signed Cameron Artis-Payne, who they used as the primary backup for most of the second half of the season once CJ Anderson was released.
Secondary
Questions To Answer: Who is going to play free safety? Does Rashaan Gaulden fit more in at the nickel than at safety?
What They Said: “We’ve got a good group right now that we feel strongly right now that can compete, that can give us some depth there as well; kind of an outlier a little bit is Cole Luke. He’s a very smart, headsy player – he played some corner, played some nickel for us… last year, we kept him on the practice squad working at the safety position and he’s shown an aptitude for it, so he’s another guy that’s kind of on the outside looking in, but I also think he’s the kind of guy that has a skillset that could translate to playing free safety.” – Ron Rivera on the safety group.
“We know he had a lot of success when he was at Tennessee playing that position, but a young man that, really, is an inside player is Corn [Elder] – and Corn has done some good things as well. We’ve got several candidates for that big nickel position, but the guy, I think, that can give you some versatility is Rashaan and we’ve got to give him every opportunity to find out if that’s a home place for him. And if not, if he plays the Big Nickel, then great – then that means we’ve got to find somebody [to play at nickel cornerback] and I think Corn’s got a little bit of that skillset as well.” – Ron Rivera on Rashaan Gaulden playing nickel cornerback.
Possible Pick/Analysis: Don’t rule out safety as early as Day 2 – or even earlier if the team trades down into the latter part of the first round. Rivera and Hurney made a point to praise their current safety group, but they don’t have a true free safety on the roster to pair with Eric Reid; if the draft board doesn’t fall correctly, don’t be surprised if the team looks to the free agent market to shore up that position after the draft is over.
