CHARLOTTE — There are certain players the Panthers bring in for 30 visits that require a closer look at their medical records. Others, they might be trying to determine if a guy's a schematic fit.

But for Panthers general manager Dan Morgan, it's mostly about getting a sense of the human being involved, because of something he's learned over his years as a player and a scout.

"I think really it's us getting to know guys," Morgan said. "I feel like if you're going to miss on a guy, you're going to miss because you don't know what he's about from a personal character standpoint, and you don't know what he's about from a football standpoint.

"So we want to find out as much as we can about these guys as possible, understand how passionate they are, what they like to do away from the game, how they spend their time away from the facility. So I think all aspects of the player, we just want to know, and get as much information as possible."

That's why when they bring players in during April, they get a tour of the entire building, from the strength staff to athletic training to coaches to scouts, from executive VP of football operations Brandt Tilis to coach Dave Canales, just to get to know the entire person.

That makes for a long day for the guys who come in with luggage, many of them in the middle of long tours, but it also gives you a chance to see them at various points of the day.

"They're going to make a lot of contact around the building, whether it's with our strength and conditioning, our medical staff, our coaches, or the personnel staff," Morgan said. "There's going to be a lot of people that are going to interact with them during the day. We usually get together afterward and talk that through, and hey, what did you think of the guy? What did you think of that guy? We go around and get their opinions, and maybe they act one way with me, but with a trainer or something, they're not as good a guy.

"I think it's really just to bring the guys in and get to know them a little more, but not just me, not just coach Canales, but is he going to be a fit in our building?"

No rule against three straight first-round WRs

Even after drafting Tetairoa McMillan with the eighth overall pick in 2025 and Xavier Legette with the 32nd in 2024, Morgan said there's nothing precluding them from looking there again.

The Panthers pick 19th overall in the first round (and you can see a full list of their picks here).

"No," Morgan replied honestly when asked if that made it less likely. "I think with anything, we're going to take the best player. So if the best player we feel is that at 19, I wouldn't hesitate to draft another wideout.

"I don't think there's a rule that says you can't draft a wide receiver three years in a row. So I'm not really going to box us in and say we're not going to draft him."

Morgan said with the increasing prevalence of 7-on-7 camps and tournaments at the younger levels, there are more receivers coming into the league with more polish and more experience, which makes it a deeper group.

Depth a factor in draft decisions

Canales recently said at the league meetings that it's hard to think about using the 19th pick on someone without an immediate role, but Morgan said that can manifest itself in a lot of ways.

"At this point, with the 19th pick, we really have an opportunity to bring a player in that can help us immediately. Who's that going to be?" Canales said. "Of course, Dan, Brandt, myself will always say we want to take the best available player. That's what we did last year. When we looked at who was available at that spot at eight, T-Mac was the best player. And so we were able to do that.

"We'd like to do that again. I don't really believe in drafting for depth or doing things like that. It's like, who can impact our team at that level? It could be a wideout. It could be a tight end. Could be a safety. There's a couple of dynamic safeties that could free us up. The pass-rush class, we've got to still kind of see where they are at the top. Where do we think the top guys are going? Look at the mocks and all that, and see where there might be a little bit of a dropoff there. But I think it's an opportunity for us to really add a value player at 19, where we're still kind of high enough that's an impact player."

Morgan said that's not specifically a depth-chart question, given the different timelines for different positions.

"I understand what coach is saying in terms of, obviously you want your first-round pick to be able to come in and contribute immediately," Morgan said Tuesday. "I'm kind of with him on that, you want your first-round pick to play. But there are different scenarios where maybe it takes a guy a little longer to develop, and he may not contribute right away, but with some of the picks at different positions, it may take a little longer for those guys to develop, for sure."

Plans set for Young's fifth-year option

Back in January, Dan Morgan told reporters the Panthers planned on picking up quarterback Bryce Young's fifth-year option. That hasn't happened officially yet, but it is now on the horizon, according to Morgan, for the time period after the draft.

"Yeah, once the draft's over, we'll definitely get that going," Morgan said Tuesday.

"Obviously, the players are not in the building yet, so once Bryce gets in the building, we're busy with the draft, it'soffseason, so we'll get that done as soon as he gets back."

Waiting until after the draft gives the club a better understanding of where the cap situation will sit, since the fifth-year option makes a contract fully guaranteed. Young is not the only factor in the Panthers' current cap calculations. Morgan admitted there could be other moves to come to clear room.

"Those are things that we talk through on a daily basis," Morgan shared. "When we have to make the move, we'll make the move. There's different ways to go about that and figured it out. Luckily, I have Brandt, Brandt's really good at that, and myself and him and coach Canales collaborating and figuring out a way."

The future at defensive tackle

The Panthers said goodbye to one of their defensive leaders this offseason, releasing defensive tackle A'Shawn Robinson ahead of the new league year and free agency. Robinson spent two seasons with the Panthers, recording 145 tackles, 8.0 sacks, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.

He is heading into his 11th year this coming season.

"A'Shawn, great dude, great leader, we'll definitely miss him around here," said Morgan on Tuesday of the decision."That's definitely just part of the business."

Carolina still has Derrick Brown, Bobby Brown III, Tershawn Wharton and Cam Jackson in the room, along with LaBryan Ray and Jared Harrison-Hunte. The opportunity to add more to that unit is intriguing in this class.

"In terms of defensive tackle class, I feel pretty good about it," admitted the GM. "I think it's a little top-heavy, but I do think there are guys we like that we pinpointed that we like, so I think if the opportunity arises, we would definitely have competition and depth there."

To Morgan's point, there are a handful of defensive tackles in this year's class that are hovering around first-round grades, such as Kayden McDonald, Caleb Banks, Peter Woods from Clemson, and more.

The trading floor

Dan Morgan's first two years as the Panthers' general manager have seen a litany of trades. As each draft gets into later rounds, the GM and Tilis have proven themselves willing to trade up, down, and all around.

Just over a week away from this year's draft, though, Morgan insists he isn't going into it intending to move around. He'll let the board dictate what happens.

"I think we, philosophically, we have an open-minded mindset," Morgan explained. "So, again, like, we're open to anything, whether it's moving back, whether it's moving up, if we feel like a guy can be an impact player for us, I do think all options are on the table."

Morgan and team have traded seven times in the last two years alone. They hold seven picks in this upcoming draft and sit in the middle of a first round in which multiple teams hold multiple first and second-round picks.

But still, Morgan maintains nothing will be pre-decided. If a guy is in position, though, nothing will be discounted.

"We're always going to be watching our board, seeing guys fall off the board, and as they fall off the board, if we feel like we need to make a move because maybe there's one person at a position that we really like that's left, then we'll make a move if we feel like we need to make a move at that time."