CHARLOTTE, N.C. — One night and 38 picks after taking Bryce Young No. 1 in the 2023 draft, Carolina Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer selected a big, physical wide receiver from Ole Miss to pair with the franchise’s new quarterback.
The Panthers liked the speed-power combination they’d seen from Jonathan Mingo on film, and envisioned pairing him with Young to form a successful QB-WR duo like what the Cincinnati Bengals have with Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase.
“We just see him as a really good scheme fit. We run a lot of shallow crosses. We want to get the ball vertical. He has been very effective there,” then-head coach Frank Reich said after Mingo was selected.
“And like Scott said, when a guy has elite ball skills and you’ve got a super accurate passer like we do, that is just a really good combination,” Reich added. “Just get it near him. He has strong hands to the ball and he will be a great target for Bryce.”
A year and a half after they were drafted on consecutive nights, Mingo has been traded to the Dallas Cowboys and Young’s future in Carolina is on shaky ground. Things clearly didn’t work out as planned.
The Panthers sent Mingo to Dallas before Tuesday’s 4 p.m. trade deadline along with a seventh-round pick in 2025 for a fourth-round pick next year. As expected, the Panthers held on to Young through the deadline, though trade speculation will continue to swirl until first-year coach Dave Canales commits to Young or the former Alabama QB solidifies his spot by playing well the second half of the season.
To this point, Canales has yet to publicly commit to Young as his starter this week, let alone the rest of the year and beyond. Canales said Monday he was still working through the decision of whether to start Young or veteran Andy Dalton against the New York Giants in Munich.
“Still just trying to make sure we think about all the things that go into it and make sure we’re all on the same page communicating that,” Canales said. “And then we’ll make a decision in the next couple days.”
Young is coming off one of the better games of his career, leading his first game-winning touchdown drive to guide the Panthers to a 23-22 win against the New Orleans Saints. With Diontae Johnson in Baltimore and Adam Thielen still on injured reserve, Young’s top three receivers against the Saints were all rookies — tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders, first-round pick Xavier Legette and undrafted free-agent Jalen Coker.
Meanwhile, Young targeted Mingo just once — an incompletion on a short route during the Panthers’ first offensive series.
Credit Dan Morgan, who succeeded Fitterer as GM, for getting value for a player who’d been passed — if not lapped — on the depth chart by Legette and Coker. The Cowboys, who had Mingo in for a pre-draft visit last year, gave the Panthers more for Mingo than what Morgan received for Johnson.
Johnson had an expiring contract and a reputation as a bad locker room fit, both of which hurt the Panthers’ leverage. Still, by swapping a sixth-round pick and Johnson for the Ravens’ fifth, Morgan at least moved up a bit with a Day-3 selection.
The Panthers now have nine picks in next year’s draft, including eight in the first five rounds. That’s a healthy supply from which Morgan, Canales and Brandt Tilis can begin restocking a roster that is one of the worst in the league.
Panthers’ updated 2025 draft picks, and it’s still early:
1st
2nd (LAR)
3rd
4th
4th (DAL)
5th
5th (NYG)
5th (BAL)
7th— Joe Person (@josephperson) November 5, 2024
The Panthers aren’t totally devoid of talent, although they lost their best player in Week 1 when Pro Bowl defensive lineman Derrick Brown tore his meniscus at New Orleans. Still, Chuba Hubbard is fifth in the league in rushing and on pace for his first 1,000-yard season, while cornerback Jaycee Horn is healthy and playing like a top-10 pick. The Panthers view both fourth-year players as foundational pieces they hope to retain.
In addition to Mingo, teams also called the Panthers about veteran wideout Adam Thielen, according to a league source. The Pittsburgh Steelers were reportedly among them, but instead traded for New York Jets receiver Mike Williams.
Thielen has missed the past six games with a hamstring injury, which he sustained while diving to catch a touchdown pass in Dalton’s first start Week 3 in Las Vegas. The 34-year-old Thielen is under contract for next season, though who he will be catching passes from remains to be seen.
While most of his focus has been on his injury rehab, Thielen has noticed Young playing with more confidence and energy since replacing Dalton two weeks ago after Dalton sprained his thumb in a car accident.
“Being a little free out there and just playing his game and letting it happen, instead of feeling like he has to be perfect,” Thielen said of Young. “Just going out there and playing ball and whatever happens, happens. You can feel good about that.”
The Panthers can feel good about their work Tuesday, when most observers thought Morgan “won” the Mingo trade. And with few on the field the past two years, the Panthers will take any W they can get — especially if it means more resources for the work to come.
(Top photo of Jonathan Mingo and Bryce Young: Bob Donnan / Imagn Images)
