The Panthers hired Dan Morgan as president of football operations and general manager on January 22, 2024. Morgan is a Panthers “lifer” after spending his seven-year NFL career in Charlotte from 2001 through 2007 then spending years in the Panthers front office. Let’s take a look back on Morgan’s second season as GM. We’ve previously evaluated his performance with trades and with free agents.
Let’s now assess Morgan’s 2025 draft day performance. Today we will focus on draft day trades plus first three
rounds, will focus on players drafted in Rounds 3-7.
Draft day performance
It’s a bit of a fool’s errand to evaluate a draft class after just one season because we still don’t know what type of player these guys will be in three or four years, but one season is all the data we have.
When grading draft picks it’s important to measure their performance relative to rookie expectations. My general criteria for rookies is this:
Round 1 – Average contributing starter
Round 2 – Spot starter and key rotational piece
Rounds 3-4 – Capable rotational depth
Rounds 5-6 – Special teams
Round 7 – Any contributions is a borderline miracle
1st Round, No. 8 – Tetairoa McMillan, wide receiver
2025 stats: 17 games (17 starts), 70 receptions, 1,014 yards, 7 TDs
The University of Arizona star was a home run pick. He was named by the Pro Football Writers of America as the rookie of the year, offensive rookie of the year, and a member of the all-rookie team. A rookie exceeding 1,000 receiving yards on a team with an inconsistent passing attack like the Panthers and no true WR2 to take the heat off him is remarkable.
At 6-foot-5 and 212 pounds he can overpower smaller defenders. With his crisp routes and athleticism he quickly separates from linebackers and safeties. He has All-Pro potential and could develop into one of the best receivers in the league for the next decade.
Grade relative to expectations: A+
2nd Round, No. 51 – Nic Scourton, outside linebacker
2025 stats: 17 games (8 starts), 47 tackles, 5.0 sacks, 7 tackles for loss, 9 QB hits, 15 pressures
The Panthers defense struggled all season to get to the quarterback, and Scourton’s five sacks tied Derrick Brown for the most on the team. His 15 pressures also tied Brown for most on the team. In other words, the two most disruptive players on the Panthers defense are a previous Pro Bowler in Derrick Brown and a second round rookie in Nic Scourton.
After starting the season somewhat slowly with 11 tackles through the Panthers first seven games, over the next 10 games he racked up 46 tackles and 3.5 sacks. The progress he made as the season progressed was evident, which is exactly what teams want to see from second round picks. He had a solid rookie season and could develop into an impact player.
Grade relative to expectations: B+
Round 3, No. 77 – Princely Umanmielen, outside linebacker
2025 stats: 16 games (0 starts), 24 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 2 tackles for loss, 5 pressures
The former Florida and Ole Miss star generally met expectations for a third round pick. He played 222 defensive snaps over 16 games, or about 14 snaps per game, making him a consistent rotational piece. Carolina traded up eight spots in the third round to land Umanmielen so the front office was definitely targeting him given his skillset and the team’s needs.
Realistic expectations for a third round pick is to provide capable rotational depth, and Princely did just that. That said, Panthers fans were probably hoping for more impact from his rookie season given the team’s massive need for more pressure off the edge, but that will have to come in future years.
Grade relative to expectations: B-
Rounds 1-3 summary
In all, Dan Morgan and his front office talent evaluators had a strong first three rounds of the 2025 draft. Tetairoa McMillan will give the Panthers their first legit WR1 since DJ Moore left Carolina after the 2022 season. Nic Scourton flashed potential to develop into a capable full-time starter. Princely Umanmielen was fine for a third round pick and gained some valuable experience in his rookie season.
In assessing Dan Morgan’s performance in the draft, he gets extra credit for knocking it out of the part with Tet McMillan.
Well done, Mr. Morgan.
Overall grade for Rounds 1-3: A–
