With the No. 129 pick in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Carolina Panthers selected Texas A&M cornerback Will Lee III on Saturday in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The three-star recruit from Missouri started his college football career at Iowa Western Community College before transferring to Kansas State for the 2023 season. In his only season with the Wildcats, Lee racked up 42 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, eight pass deflections and two interceptions. From there, he entered the transfer portal and landed in Mike Elko's elite defensive system in Bryan-College Station.
In his first season with Texas A&M in 2024, Lee recorded 42 tackles, 12 pass deflections and two interceptions. He followed that by notching 50 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack and eight pass deflections in the Aggies' College Football Playoff run in 2025.
The anchor of the Maroon and White secondary is headed to Charlotte, North Carolina, where he will aim to make an impact alongside teammates like Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson on the Panthers' defense.
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While his statistics don't jump off the charts, Lee brings an elite level of athleticism, physicality and an even distribution of solid play in zone and man coverage. Lee received a 6.12 prospect grade from the 2026 NFL Combine with a 67 production score (18th among all corners), 70 athleticism score (20th among all corners) for a 71 total score (21st among all corners).
Lee has promise as a potential starting cornerback in the NFL, but he will need to limit mental mistakes and improve his vertical speed moving forward with the Panthers.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Carolina Panthers select Texas A&M CB in fourth round of NFL draft