The Carolina Panthers might’ve been ready to pull off one of the biggest shockers of the 2025 NFL draft.
On Wednesday, ESPN senior NFL reporter Jeremy Fowler cleaned out his notebook of the final bits of intel from this year’s selection process. Included in his coverage of the Panthers was this interesting little nugget . . .
And I believe that if Mizzou right tackle Armand Membou was there, the Panthers would have thought long and hard about it.
A few team beat writers, namely Darin Gantt of Panthers.com and Joe Person of The Athletic, did suggest that Carolina was looking into the offensive tackle position during the lead-up to the draft. That due diligence may have been inspired by the uncertainty surrounding longtime starting right tackle Taylor Moton, who is now entering the final year of his contract.
President of football operations and general manager Dan Morgan was asked about Moton’s future following the third and final day of the draft.
“Yeah, we love Taylor,” he replied. “Taylor is, obviously, a really good player. We’re excited about him and this season and from there, we’ll get together and we’ll figure out the future. But right now, we’re focused on the now.”
Membou was selected one spot ahead of the Panthers by the New York Jets at No. 7.
Then, in what was still at least a minor surprise, Morgan and company grabbed University of Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan at No. 8.
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