We don’t know that the Panthers prefer Cam Newton to Blaine Gabbert. We do know that multiple national reporters and those closest to the team in Carolina believe that’s true.
Writing for the Charlotte Observer Sunday, Tom Sorensen says that Cam Newton, Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green, and LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson are the three players the Panthers love.
“If Carolina trades down, and Newton, Green and Peterson are gone, it could take Gabbert,” Sorensen writes. “But I swear that’s the only way.”
Darin Gantt of the Rock Hill Herald has made similar comments over the last few weeks, feeling that the Panthers prefer Newton to Gabbert. Green and Peterson seem more likely to be targets if the Panthers traded down.
Still, Green-to-Carolina at No. 1 has picked up a little steam. PFW’s Nolan Nawrocki and NFL Network’s Charley Casserly both had Green going first overall in their latest mock drafts.
They are betting on the underdog. At this stage, Newton sure looks like the favorite to go first overall.