The prospect of the Carolina Panthers drafting Kenny Pickett seemed likely, even inevitable to some for a few months now—but not for one of the team’s leading beat writers.
As part of Thursday’s episode of The Roar: A Carolina Panthers Podcast, Jonathan M. Alexander of The Charlotte Observer joined hosts John Ellis and Billy Marshall to talk shop. That shop included a strong prediction on Alexander’s part, one that wouldn’t see Pickett reunite (kinda) with head coach Matt Rhule.
“I wanna go on the record about this, too,” he said while referencing the 2016 photo of Pickett and Rhule at Temple University. “And fans, you can come at me if I’m wrong on this. I will be shocked if the Panthers pick Kenny Pickett at six. I will be shocked. I wanna put that out on the record so anyone can challenge me when it happens.”
It seems like the confidence index is at a 10 on this one, no?
Despite the apparent connections between the two sides—Pickett’s past commitment to Rhule, owner David Tepper’s reported interest in the fellow University of Pittsburgh Panther—the 23-year-old isn’t viewed as a home-run investment. While he is a solid passer, possesses above-average athleticism and is as pro-ready as they come in this class, his limitations as a downfield thrower and a literal holder of the pigskin may have teams thinking he was just a one-year wonder in 2021.
Instead of Pickett, or even Liberty University’s Malik Willis, Alexander believes the Panthers will likely end up acquiring a veteran to put under center. Cleveland’s Baker Mayfield and San Francisco’s Jimmy Garoppolo, both of which are being supplanted by shiny new toys for the Browns and 49ers, are the two obvious possibilities.
If Carolina does, however, actually take Pickett, then don’t blow up Jonathan’s mentions too badly. He’s good people.
