Well, the Carolina Panthers can't please everybody.
Your reigning NFC South champions came out of this weekend with one of the league's most critically acclaimed 2026 NFL Draft classes. General manager Dan Morgan and company were widely praised for the work they did in this year's selection process—which yielded the likes of Georgia offensive tackle Monroe Freeling, Texas Tech defensive lineman Lee Hunter and Tennessee wideout Chris Brazzell II.
Yet, the Panthers took quite a tumble in The Athletic's latest set of power rankings, going from No. 13 all the way down to No. 18. The explanation for their drop was not made clear, but Josh Kendall—the publication's senior writer for the Atlanta Falcons—did give Carolina some props for their fifth-round pick in center Sam Hecht:
Let’s face it: A fifth-round center isn’t a sexy pick. But the free agent Carolina brought in at center, Luke Fortner, has started only 10 games in the last two years. Hecht doesn’t have any elite traits, but he is the type of solid collegiate player who just keeps being solid in the NFL. He started 25 games over the last two seasons.
Along with Hecht, the third day of the draft left Carolina with Texas A&M cornerback Will Lee III, Penn State safety Zakee Wheatley and Miami of Ohio linebacker Jackson Kuwatch.
The ranks have the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who finished second in the division, above the Panthers at the 16th spot. They're followed by the Falcons (No. 22), then the New Orleans Saints (No. 24).
Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers drop in post-NFL draft power rankings