Report: Carolina Panthers could move down after trading for No. 1 pick in 2023 NFL Draft

The Carolina Panthers might not be done maneuvering ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft, and what they’re potentially considering is unorthodox, to say the least. After giving up multiple first and second round picks plus talented wideout DJ Moore to climb into the No. 1 spot in the draft, head coach Frank Reich and general manager Scott Fitterer might trade back out of the spot.

According to Joe Person of The Athletic, Reich and Fitterer are sold on more than one quarterback at the top of the draft. With that in mind, picking No. 1 overall isn’t a necessity. From there they sit now, the Panthers decision makers feel like they are in control of the draft.

“A source said Scott Fitterer and Frank Reich have conviction on a couple of QBs at the top. If they end up liking more than 1, they could potentially trade down,” Person tweeted.

While a trade-up-to-one-then-trade-back move like that hasn’t occurred in recent memory, it would likely result in the Panthers recouping some draft capital while still picking ahead of their previous draft slot at No. 9 overall.

And with quarterback the likely pick and No. 1 overall currently on their books, an important question likely looms for Reich, Fitterer and the Panthers: Bryce Young or CJ Stroud? (Or even someone else?)

Report: Chicago Bears agree to trade No. 1 overall pick in 2023 NFL Draft to Carolina Panthers

There have been plenty of questions about what direction the Chicago Bears will go with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. Those, apparently, have been answered — and in a big way.

The Bears are trading the top pick in this year’s draft to the Carolina Panthers, according to multiple reports. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport first reported the news. ESPN’s Adam Schefter then reported Chicago will get wide receiver DJ Moore, the No. 9 overall pick and the No. 61 overall pick in 2023, Carolina’s first-round pick in 2024 and the Panthers’ second round pick in 2025 in return.

For the Bears, they not only load up on draft capital, but add a likely WR1 for quarterback Justin Fields. But the Panthers, they have the ability to take its potential franchise quarterback atop the draft. It’ll be interesting to see which direction they go — and Schefter said it’s likely a two-quarterback race during a SportsCenter appearance shortly after he broke the news.

“Look, I think the pick will boil down to either Bryce Young or CJ Stroud,” Schefter said on SportsCenter. “If you look at Frank Reich’s history … he has preferred bigger quarterbacks. That would be the CJ Stroud model. There are people who believe Bryce Young should be the No. 1 overall pick, that he’s a mini-Patrick Mahomes. Well, we’ll see if that’s the direction they go. But clearly, at this point in time, it seems to me a decision between Bryce Young and CJ Stroud both in play for the No. 1 overall pick, and as that one Panthers official just said to me, ‘We’ve got 48 days to go through this.’

“I go back to what the 49ers did when they traded up for Trey Lance. And I still maintain and believe that when they made the trade, Mac Jones was the guy that they were leaning towards taking. But they had all that extra time to evaluate the quarterbacks and go through the process, and ultimately, they settled in on Trey Lance. So, the Panthers may have an idea and a lean today, but they have almost seven full weeks to go through their process and make a final decision about what to do. But there’s no doubt that they were comfortable going up to No. 1.”