The Carolina Panthers spent a boatload of money this offseason to improve their pass rush. While things have improved in this department compared to the last few years, they're still not getting enough of a return on their investment.
In two of their three games so far, the Panthers have had a difficult time converting pressures into sacks—with both Caleb Williams and Deshaun Watson running circles around their pass rushers. In-between, they only got to the totally immobile Cooper Rush for one sack.
Heading into Week 4, Carolina is tied with several other teams with seven sacks—which ranks them either 11th or 19th or anywhere in the middle, depending on how you want to look at it.
The season is still young, but it wouldn't come as a surprise if
the Panthers look to boost their edge rotation once again with their first pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
A new mock from Mike Renner at CBS Sports has them taking South Carolina's Dylan Stewart at No. 9 overall. Renner writes:
Stewart is one of the freakiest athletes you'll ever see for someone who's 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds. At that size, he moves like a wide receiver. His draft stock has been in free fall this year, though, as he missed the first two weeks of the season with a back injury and then got suspended for throwing a punch vs. Alabama over the weekend. The talent is top-5 worthy, but the red flags are growing.
CBS has Stewart ranked as the top prospect at his position, while the consensus big board has him second behind Texas star Colin Simmons. Either way, Stewart (6-foot-6, 247 pounds) would make a big impact for the Panthers defense where they need it most.
From 2024 to 2025, Stewart tacked up 11.0 sacks and 23.5 tackles for a loss to go with six forced fumbles. Here are the highlights from last season . . .
At the moment Stewart has been suspended one game for throwing a punch, which may wind up affecting his draft stock. However, the Panthers have never seen a South Carolina prospect they haven't liked, and they clearly still need all the pass-rushing firepower they can get.
If he's still on the board when they're on the clock, they have to at least seriously consider making him their top pick.
Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers pick local pass-rushing star in new 2027 mock draft
