Fans of the Carolina Panthers are happy today after general manager Dan Morgan selected Georgia offensive tackle Monroe Freeling with the 19th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft last night. Questions abound regarding the futures of both left tackle Ikem Ekwonu (ruptured patellar tendon) and right tackle Taylor Moton (going on 32).
Freeling is a raw, but promising, offensive tackle who can both take his time to develop behind the tackles already on the roster and provide much needed depth during the season
in the event where injuries force him onto the field in 2026. It is almost always wise to grab a talented offensive lineman in the draft when you can. It is doubly so when your team has foreseeable needs along the line. That wisdom has helped curb some of the sting of the Panthers passing on some big name playmakers on both sides of the ball in favor of Freeling and is probably why the vast majority of fans gave this selection a positive grade last night.
That’s 80% of Panthers fans giving this pick an A or B. That’s more positive than folks were about the Tetairoa McMillan pick last season (an even 35/35 split for A and B).
Of course, no pick is taken in a vacuum, so we’ll have to see what happens tonight and tomorrow before we get too excited about this draft class. We can wait to rush to FanDuel to bet on the Panthers winning the Super Bowl for the first consecutive time until after the entire draft is in the books.
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