Draft day is finally upon us.
Thursday night, the Carolina Panthers will open the 2023 NFL Draft by making the No. 1 overall selection. As of writing this, Bryce Young is a -2000 favorite to wind up as the top pick, but is the right call for the future of the franchise?
I have admittedly waffled between who I think the Panthers should take at No. 1. The only thing I’ve known for certain this whole time is that I don’t want them to pick Kentucky’s Will Levis. But as the draft has gotten closer and closer, I’ve decided the best-case scenario would be for Carolina to swing for the fences — and take Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson when the time comes.
Richardson, who stands at 6-foot-4 and 244 pounds, has played third fiddle behind Young and Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud during the pre-draft process, but he started closing ground once he showcased his athleticism at the NFL Combine. At the high-stakes workout in Indianapolis, Richardson ran a 4.43 40-yard dash and set new quarterback records in the vertical jump (40.5 inches) and the broad jump (10 feet, nine inches). He also has one of the strongest arms in the class, which he displayed by hitting the ceiling with a throw during his Pro Day on March 30.
While Young and Stroud put up immense numbers in college, Richardson only started one season at Florida. Playing this past fall, the quarterback completed just 53.8% of his passes for 2,549 yards and 17 touchdowns against nine interceptions. While those numbers are concerning, he did run for 654 yards and nine touchdowns and showed flashes of truly elite athleticism during his time in Gainesville.
Richardson is, admittedly, one of the rawest prospects in this class, but his ceiling is arguably higher than any player set to be drafted, regardless of position. While it might not make sense for some teams to take on the risk, the Panthers are uniquely set up to maximize on Richardson’s potential.
Carolina has an all-star coaching staff led by Frank Reich, a former quarterback who has worked with Peyton Manning and Phillip Rivers during his coaching tenure in the league. Quarterbacks coach Josh McCown played 16 years in the league and started 76 career games. And Jim Caldwell — who is serving as a senior assistant to Reich — has been credited with developing Manning and Matt Stafford early in their careers.
If Richardson becomes a Panther, he’ll have the perfect trio of coaches to learn from as he tries to improve the more technical aspects of his game, namely his mechanics, footwork and processing. He’ll also have a veteran quarterback in the locker room alongside him in Andy Dalton, whom Carolina signed as a free agent this offseason.
All this sets up well for Richardson, who could very well follow the Josh Allen career trajectory if things go well. Allen was considered the rawest prospect in the 2018 NFL Draft when Buffalo took him seventh overall, but he has developed into arguably the most dangerous dual-threat quarterback in the league over the last five years.
Like Richardson, Allen had limited college starting experience, and he completed just 56.2% of his passes over 27 games played with 44 touchdowns and 21 interceptions. While his completion percentage was lower in 2022, Richardson’s tape shows a number of drops and poor plays by receivers that could have contributed to the low number.
The dream scenario for the Panthers is that Richardson could become a player of the same caliber as Cam Newton, the franchise’s all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns and rushing touchdowns whom they selected No. 1 overall back in the 2011 Draft.
Richardson is way more raw than Newton — who won the Heisman Trophy — was coming out of college, but it’s hard to overlook the similarity in size, shape and play style. Newton is a legend to the franchise, and if everything goes according to plan, Richardson could be that special too.
All the Panthers have to do is take a chance.
Sports Editor Jeremy Vernon can be reached at jeremy@chathamnr.com or on Twitter at @jbo_vernon.