BetCarolina.com, as part of our North Carolina sports betting analysis, gathered the top players that the Carolina Panthers have drafted after the first round since 2000. These are the top 10 by highest weighted Approximate Value (wAV) from Pro-Football-Reference.com for all players drafted by Carolina from Rounds 2-7 in the past 25 years.
Pos., Player | Year, Pick No. | Career wAV* |
WR Steve Smith Jr. | 2001, No. 74 | 102 |
C Ryan Kalil | 2007, No. 59 | 72 |
DT Kris Jenkins | 2001, No. 44 | 68 |
LB Will Witherspoon | 2002, No. 73 | 59 |
DB Deon Grant | 2000, No. 57 | 56 |
OL Trai Turner | 2014, No. 92 | 51 |
DE Charles Johnson | 2007, No. 83 | 47 |
CB James Bradberry | 2016, No. 62 | 46 |
G Evan Mathis | 2005, No. 79 | 46 |
T Travelle Wharton | 2004, No. 94 | 45 |
*The career weighted Approximate Value is for a player’s entire career, which might include seasons played with other teams.
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Only time will decide if any of the seven players that the Panthers selected after the first round last week will live up to the lofty standard set by Carolina’s previous NFL Draft steals. But we can say for sure that there’s one pick that stands above them all in Charlotte.
Steve Smith Jr., taken in the third round by Carolina in 2001 out of Utah, excelled more than most during his impressive 219-game NFL career. Smith had a weighted approximate value of 102 in 219 games, finishing his career in Carolina with 836 catches for 12,197 yards and 67 touchdowns, according to Pro Football Reference data.
That total put Smith well ahead of the next closest Carolina non-first round pick this century, which was former USC center Ryan Kalil. The Panthers took Kalil in the second round (59th overall) in 2007 and he went on to play 155 games with a weighted approximate value of 72 over his career.
If any players from the 2025 NFL Draft shine right away, it could boost Carolina Panthers betting odds.
Other noteworthy non-first round picks in Carolina that made the list included a few standouts on defense – namely defensive tackle Kris Jenkins (68 wAV in 108 games out of Maryland), linebacker Will Witherspoon (59 wAV in 189 games out of Georgia) and defensive back Deon Grant (56 wAV in 176 games out of Tennessee).
As for this year’s draft class, the first step in their on-field journey was taken over the weekend in Green Bay, with eight new players joining the Panthers’ roster at this year’s NFL Draft, including first-rounder Tetairoa McMillan, a wide receiver out of Arizona.
At BetMGM North Carolina Sportsbook, the Panthers emerged from the 2025 NFL Draft with +450 odds to win the NFC South in the 2025-26 season.
USA Today photo by Jim Dedmon
Author
Christopher Boan is a lead writer at BetCarolina.com specializing in covering state issues. He has covered sports and sports betting in Arizona for more than seven years, including stops at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly and the Green Valley News.
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