On Tuesday, Carolina Panthers president of football operations and general manager Dan Morgan left us with one last press conference before the start of the 2025 NFL draft. But he didn't go without also leaving behind a handful of interesting nuggets.
Here are the five biggest takeaways from Morgan's availability from this afternoon . . .
Open for business
As expected, the Panthers are open to the idea of trading down from the eighth overall pick.
"I don't really wanna get into specifics on where I would want to trade back to, but we're definitely open to trading back and acquiring more picks," he stated. "I think we're gonna be open to all possibilities—let's put it that way."
Morgan began his front office career under Seattle Seahawks president of football operations and general manager John Schneider, who is certainly no stranger to moving down in the order. So even though Morgan moved up in his first draft at the helm to secure wide receiver Xavier Legette last year, the modus operandi could result in a later first-round selection on Thursday night.
Sticking with Ickey?
The Panthers have until May 2 to exercise the fifth-year option on 2022 first-round pick Ikem Ekwonu. But Morgan made it clear that he's in no hurry to officially lock that season in for their starting left tackle.
"We're just taking our time with that," he said. "There's no rush. We still have, I think it's May 2nd. So we're not rushing that. We're taking our time, and we'll have a plan in place."
Given Ekwonu's solid performance to this point as well as the importance of the position, the smart move would be to trigger that fifth year. The holdup, however, may indicate that the team is interested in signing the 24-year-old to a long-term deal, at a lesser annual value than the option, before the deadline.
Productive prospects
Does Carolina view a lack of production at the collegiate level as a red flag for draft prospects? Yep.
"Obviously, you want the production. You want the body of work to be there," Morgan stated. "You obviously don't wanna draft guys that weren't productive in college. Obviously, we want guys with a lot of production, and I think that usually translates to the next level."
That philosophy could eliminate a few notable players from consideration—including pass rushers Mykel Williams and Shemar Stewart. Over three seasons, Williams amassed 14.0 sacks while Stewart totaled just 4.5.
Adding to the WR room?
Like head coach Dave Canales, Morgan seems content with the current state of their receiver room. But don't rule out the addition of a new pass catcher during the draft.
"We're excited about the development of Xavier [Legette] and Jalen Coker and some of our young guys," he said. "So with [Adam] Thielen still in there, re-signing David Moore—I think we do feel good about our receiver room. We're looking forward to seeing them compete and just get better and better.
"That's not to say that we're not gonna invest in a receiver at some point during the draft. So we're just gonna draft really good football players and if it's a wideout, then so be it."
Jalon Walker's fit
Morgan chose not to reveal much about his view of University of Georgia linebacker Jalon Walker during this year's scouting combine. He did, however, open up a bit about the versatile defender on Tuesday.
"I mean, Jalon's a good player," Morgan said. "I think for us, I guess I'll talk on it now, he's an outside linebacker for us that I feel like could do a lot in our defense. I think he's definitely a great person, really good player and I think he's got a bright future ahead."
Walker, who played both on the edge and off the ball for the Bulldogs in 2024, has felt like the frontrunner for Carolina's first-rounder. And Morgan believes the All-American's flexibility would bring even more value to the table.
"I think—in Jalon's case—he can play on the outside, you can move him inside, you can do a lot of different things with him on the defense," he added. "And I know that we do value those type of things and, again, he's a good player."
