The Carolina Panthers enter the 2025 offseason with quite a number of needs, on both sides of the ball.
While the offense seemingly turned a corner behind the rejuvenation of second-year quarterback Bryce Young, the unit could certainly use some more weapons. And then there’s the defense, which has holes on every level following a record-setting (in a bad way) 2024 campaign.
But what if the Panthers went a little outside of the box with their most valuable asset? What if they use free agency to fill those gaps, leaving their first-round pick in 2025 draft open to the best available player?
President of football operations and general manager Dan Morgan has stated that he’s looking for playmakers not only on that historically bad defense, but on offense—whether it be at wideout or tight end. So, where can he get one?
Unfortunately, Morgan and the Panthers might not find a high-caliber pass catcher who’s currently in the league. The Cincinnati Bengals appear to be using the franchise tag on standout receiver Tee Higgins while the New York Jets are likely to keep their own in Garrett Wilson, who has been (playfully) linked to Carolina over the last few months.
That leaves the draft, where two particular prospects could be in play for the eighth overall selection.
One is University of Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, a popular choice for the pick amongst mock drafters. The decorated 6-foot-5, 210-pounder may remind Panthers fans of Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans or Atlanta’s Drake London, and could be the No. 1, go-to target for Young.
The other, and this is where we go outside that box, is Penn State tight end Tyler Warren.
If Carolina is looking to surround Young with playmakers, Warren fits the bill. This 6-foot-6, 261-pounder may not be the smoothest athlete at the position—but he has the accolades, the production and the two-phase effectiveness as a pass catcher and blocker to play an integral part on an NFL offense.
Selecting a tight end all the way up at No. 8, however, does come with some question marks.
For one, the positional value does not match up with that high of a pick. Secondly, the “hit rate” on first-round tight ends hasn’t been much of a hit recently.
Six tight ends have been drafted in the first 20 selections since 2014—Brock Bowers (2024), Kyle Pitts (2021), Noah Fant (2019), T.J. Hockenson (2019), O.J. Howard (2017) and Eric Ebron (2024). Out of those six, Bowers has been the only player to prove his worth relative to his draft positioning.
Warren, though, could be closer to Bowers than the rest of that field.
The first-team All-American is one of the best pure playmakers in the draft due to his outstanding versatility in both the run and passing game. Penn State lined him up everywhere, and he was quite effective—as evidenced by his 104 catches, 1,233 yards and eight touchdowns in 2024.
Like Bowers, Warren can affect the game in a multitude of ways. And if you’ve been paying attention to the Panthers in the past handful of years, that’s not something they’ve had at the tight end spot since the days of Greg Olsen.
Tight end may not be a high-value position. They are, nonetheless, still critical to the success and consistency of any offense.
Teams like the Detroit Lions, the Buffalo Bills, the Kansas City Chiefs and the new Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles are quite dependent on their tight ends. Could Carolina be next?
Detractors will remain, but there is a legitimate argument that the best possible pick at No. 8 could just be the best remaining prospect on the board.