Brandon Hodge: Which QB do the Panthers take with the first overall pick?

Mar. 18—The Carolina Panthers are on the clock.

On March 10, the Panthers traded with the Chicago Bears for the first overall pick in this year's NFL Draft. While it involved the exchange of a fan favorite receiver D.J. Moore, the Panthers can get their franchise quarterback they've been waiting for since the days of having Cam Newton, who they drafted first overall back in 2011.

With the trade, the Panthers can select from any of the top quarterbacks in this year's draft class. But, with the four quarterbacks that could potentially go first overall, which one fits best in Carolina?

Here's a breakdown of each quarterback and what makes them enticing to teams in this year's draft.

Bryce Young

As a five star prospect and the number one quarterback out of high school in 2020, Young was widely expected to be the next great college football quarterback when he committed to the University of Alabama.

Young sat behind current New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones, but, once he took the field as the starter in 2021, he was electric. That season, he finished with a 47:7 touchdown to interception ratio, good enough to win the Heisman Trophy.

While he was the favorite to repeat as the Heisman Trophy winner in 2022, he suffered a shoulder injury during the fifth game of the season against Arkansas that sidelined him for a game but ultimately gave him issues the rest of the season.

Young's shoulder issue isn't a problem now but what is, is the fact he measured in at 5-foot-10, the same height as Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, during the recent NFL Combine. That has raised questions about whether he'll have the same issues Murray has with seeing and throwing over the offensive line in the NFL.

Young has some unique abilities that aren't seen in many quarterbacks, however. His strongest trait is his playmaking ability. He doesn't use his legs as much as he could but does when he needs to, either to get out of the pocket, or to scramble.

He is strong throwing on the run, as well. This will help Young in play action and bootlegs, and would have been a huge strength with the Panthers if this was last year with Steve Wilks, where the Panthers utilized the run heavily.

With a new staff and scheme this year, it's uncertain who will be calling the plays in Carolina, but Young has seemed to adapt and prove the doubters wrong before.

He's the most NFL-ready quarterback in this draft class. Will it be enough for the Panthers to select him with their number one pick though?

C.J. Stroud

Stroud was the backup at Ohio State to current Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields, before taking over the starting role in 2021, after Fields took off for the NFL.

Stroud passed for 4,435 passing yards and 44 touchdowns to only six interceptions in his first year as a starter while with the Buckeyes, and nearly matched that production in 2022, when he went for 41 touchdowns to six interceptions.

Young may be considered the most polished quarterback in this draft class, but Stroud isn't far behind. Although he never captured a Heisman Trophy during his college career, like Young did, he showed off elite abilities, including his all-around accuracy and his throwing power.

The best example of all these being displayed in a single game, is his performance in the 2022 College Football Playoff Semifinal against Georgia, where Stroud passed for 348 yards, four touchdowns, no interceptions, and had 34 rushing yards.

One thing that NFL scouts have reportedly been critical of with Stroud though, is the fact he doesn't use his legs enough to create higher opportunistic plays. His decision-making, at times, can also be risky, especially when he tries to force the ball to his primary receiver.

One thing that Stroud has going for him, is that he's 6-foot-3, which is notable because new Panthers head coach Frank Reich has a preference for taller quarterbacks.

He's the current betting favorite to go to the Panthers, but could more upside be what the Panthers are looking for with the next quarterback prospect on this list?

Anthony Richardson

There's no doubt that Richardson is an athletic freak at the quarterback position.

At the 2023 NFL Combine, he ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash, a 1.53-second 10-yard split, had a 40-1/2-inch vertical jump, and had a 10-foot-9 broad jump. His vertical jump set a record for the modern combine, and his broad jump was tied for the best overall since 2003. Despite all of that, he's arguably the biggest boom-bust player in this year's NFL Draft.

A three-year quarterback at the University of Florida, Richardson earned the starting job this past year over Jalen Kitna and Jack Miller III, and threw for just 2,549 yards, 17 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.

However, he rushed for 654 yards and nine touchdowns, including five games of 50 plus yards on the ground.

What also makes Richardson intriguing for Carolina is his size of 6-foot-4 and pro comparison — Cam Newton.

With Richardson's ability to run the way he can, he could be one of the more difficult quarterbacks to contain in the NFL. But, that's if he were to reach his full potential.

Richardson possesses a lot of red flags with his on-field play, including problems with his footwork that create accuracy issues. There's also a sense that he may throw the ball "too hard" on shorter throws, which can lead to receiver drops and trouble managing the game clock.

He has shown flashes of what he is capable of though, which may make it too much of a risk for the Panthers to let him slip into another team's hands.

Will Levis

Another quarterback with a taller stature at 6-foot-4, Levis served as the backup quarterback at Penn State, before transferring to the University of Kentucky, where he's been the starter for the last two years.

During his 2021 campaign, Levis passed for only 2,826 yards, with 24 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, and rushed for 376 yards and nine touchdowns.

However, this previous season, Levis' numbers were much worse, as he managed 2,406 passing yards, with a 19:10 touchdown to interception ratio, and had negative 107 rushing yards.

One reason for the drop off is because his offensive line wasn't as experienced and struggled for most of the year, noted by his 36 sacks in 2022, compared to 22 the year before.

It was also reported that he was hurt for most of the 2022 season and played out the entire year in pain.

Levis is another quarterback that NFL scouts love because of his unique physical gifts, though. His arm talent is the strongest in this draft class, and he can run well with the ball at the goal line.

His build makes him the prototypical quarterback that teams like to work with. He hasn't been mentioned much in the number one pick conversation, but he could be a guy that begins to gain more attention as he gets healthier leading up to the NFL Draft.