Sports

The Carolina Panthers' 5 Worst Draft Picks in the Last 10 Years

By HC Green Lindys Sports

Updated May 22, 2026 9:10 AM

Drafting is an inexact science. Even the best of the best miss for any number of reasons-injuries, poor scheme fit, off-the-field issues, lack of development, and so on. With the 2026 NFL Draft now in the rearview mirror, things should be quiet on the personnel side until training camps open in July.

With that in mind, it seems like the perfect time to go back over the last 10 drafts to identify picks which didn't pan out for each of the 32 clubs. Before we begin, let's set the ground rules: We're starting with the 2016 draft, so no players from the 2026 draft are eligible.

Now that we've established the parameters, here are the Carolina Panthers' five worst draft picks of the past decade:

Dishonorable Mentions

DE Daeshon Hall (77th Overall, 2017)
CB Rashaan Gaulden (85th Overall, 2018)
QB Will Grier (100th Overall, 2019)

5) WR Curtis Samuel, 40th Overall (2017)

Selected to be an offensive Swiss Army knife, Samuel struggled his first two seasons before stabilizing and becoming a decent option. His best year came in 2020, just in time to leave Carolina in free agency. While not a terrible player, the next two receivers selected that year were JuJu Smith-Schuster and future Offensive Player of the Year winner Cooper Kupp.

4) RB Jonathon Brooks, 46th Overall (2024)

Brooks tore his ACL in college, but Carolina still chose to roll the dice, making him the only running back drafted in the first two rounds in 2024. Brooks played just three games as a rookie before suffering a second ACL tear. He missed all of last season recovering. There's still time for Brooks, but his first two years couldn't have gone much worse.

arena photography — Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

3) QB Matt Corral, 94th Overall (2022)

While you can't expect to find starting quarterbacks late in Round 3, Corral represents a total whiff. He missed his rookie year with a Lisfranc injury and was waived the following August. He never appeared in an NFL game. The five QBs taken after Corral in 2022 have all started games in the NFL, including Sam Howell and "Mr. Irrelevant," Brock Purdy.

2) WR Terrace Marshall Jr., 59th Overall (2021)

Marshall seemed like a natural fit at the time, having played under then-OC Joe Brady at LSU, but outside of a few flashes during his second season, he did little in four forgettable years in the league. Among the wideouts taken after Marshall were Joshua Palmer, Nico Collins, and Amon-Ra St. Brown.

1) OL Greg Little, 37th Overall (2019)

Offensive tackle is a premium position, and Carolina hoped they'd found a long-term solution on the blind side when they chose Little early in Round 2. It wasn't to be. Injuries stunted his development, and he started just six games for the Panthers before being traded to Miami for a seventh-round pick in 2021.

This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 9:00 AM.