The 2026 NFL Draft started Thursday night and has now concluded. NC Football News has been tracking all of the North Carolina angles — from every pick made by the Carolina Panthers to players with ties across the Old North State’s college and high school ranks.
This page will be updated throughout the draft weekend with Panthers selections and North Carolina-connected players taken across all seven rounds, and notable storylines as they develop (including undrafted free agents who sign).
The draft always brings a mix of headline moments and under-the-radar opportunities, and for players across North Carolina, this weekend marks the next step in their football journeys.
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Carolina Panthers Draft Selections
NC College Players Drafted
NC High School Players Drafted
Undrafted Free Agents & Mini-Camp Invitees
📌 Last updated: April 27 2026 | 1:48 p.m. — Updates will be added throughout draft weekend
🔄 Latest Updates
Eight players who suited up North Carolina college programs in 2025 heard their names called on Saturday, led by Duke edge rusher Wesley Williams. The Blue Devils, reigning ACC champions, had three players picked in all. NC State had a pair, including All-ACC tight end Justin Joly. Wake Forest also had two draftees – including one with North Carolina A&T connections – while ECU had one.
Former Eastern Wayne standout Nick Barrett (DT), who played collegiately at South Carolina, was selected in round five by the LA Chargers.
The signing of undrafted free agents began Saturday night with players like offensive linemen Diego Pounds (Millbrook HS) and edge rusher Vincent Anthony (Jordan HS/Duke) joining NFL teams.
Carolina Panthers Picks
✅ Round 1, Pick 19 overall — OT Monroe Freeling (Georgia)
✅ Round 2, Pick 49 overall — DT Lee Hunter (Texas Tech)
✅ Round 3, Pick 83 overall — WR Chris Brazzell II (Tennessee)
✅ Round 4, Pick 129 overall — CB Will Lee III (Texas A&M)
✅ Round 5, Pick 144 overall — C Sam Hecht (Kansas State)
✅ Round 5, Pick 151 overall — SAF Zakee Wheatley (Penn State)
✅ Round 7, Pick 227 overall — LB Jackson Kuwatch (Miami OH)
✅ Round 1, Pick 19 overall: Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia
The Carolina Panthers addressed a key need along the offensive line, selecting Georgia tackle Monroe Freeling with the No. 19 overall pick. Freeling looms large at 6-7, 315. He earned second-team All-SEC honors this past season and was twice named SEC Lineman of the Week.
“Freeling wasn’t widely connected to the Panthers in the pre-draft process, but tackle was a high-end need for the team,” ESPN wrote in its draft analysis. “The addition of the uber-talented Freeling (is) a smart add for the future. There’s no pressure for the one-year starter from Georgia to break into the lineup, but he has starting potential down the road.”
The pick reinforces Carolina’s focus on protecting quarterback Bryce Young and building long-term stability up front.
All Access: Monroe Freeling's first day as a Carolina Pantherhttps://t.co/vabRIVwu7E — Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) April 25, 2026
✅ Round 2, Pick 49 overall: Lee Hunter, DT, Texas Tech
The first-team All-American from 2025 played at Auburn, UCF and then Texas Tech for his final collegiate season, mostly at nose tackle. He’s been called “The Fridge” since high school, with measurables of 6-3, 318.
USA Today said Hunter will “shut down ground games” but may not play as much on third downs. He logged 31.5 tackles-for-loss over the past three seasons.
✅ Round 3, Pick 83 overall: Chris Brazzell II, WR, Tennessee
Brazzell says he’s been a Panthers fan since elementary school, and Panthers’ fans could quickly get on his bandwagon. The 6-4, 198-pounder speedster – 4.37 second 40 at the NFL Scouting Combine – has been described as someone who can “take the top off defenses.”
Brazzell spent two seasons at Tulane before transferring to Tennessee in 2024. He led the SEC in receiving this past season, making 62 catches for 1,017 yards and nine touchdowns. One of his best efforts came against Georgia: six catches, 177 yards, three TDs.
Brazzell could be the deep threat that helps open up the Panthers’ offense even more as it develops with Bryce Young at the helm.
✅ Round 4, Pick 129 overall: Will Lee III, CB, Texas A&M
The Panthers drafted “The Fridge” in round two. Carolina got “The Blanket” with its fourth-round selection. The 6-1, 189-pound cornerback is a two-year starter from Texas A&M who got his start in the JUCO ranks before ending up at Kansas State and eventually the SEC.
Lee has four career interceptions, including a 97-yard return for a touchdown in 2024. In his two years at A&M, he logged 92 tackles and 18 passes defended. Darin Gantt from Panthers.com referred to Lee as “an experienced boundary corner with size and long arms, which is one of the prerequisites in this defense.”
The Blanket to Carolina.
With the 129th pick in the 2026 #NFLDraft, the @Panthers select, Will Lee III. pic.twitter.com/3iCE1db1Xg — Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) April 25, 2026
✅ Round 5, Pick 144 overall: Sam Hecht, C, Kansas State
Hecht is a former walk-on who ended up starting 25 games for Kansas State at center. He earned All-Big 12 this past season – and per ESPN, he did not commit an accepted penalty over 759 offensive snaps. He did not allow a single sack.
The Panthers signed a center in free agency and now will have options at the position heading into the 2026 season. Hecht is athletic at 6-3, 303.
✅ Round 5, Pick 151 overall: Zakee Wheatley, SAF, Penn State
The Panthers, active with trades on Saturday, dealt their 158th and 200th picks with Miami to move up and select Wheatley. The 6-3, 203-pounder earned defensive game MVP honors in the 2024 Fiesta Bowl after picking off a pass and recovering a fumble.
Wheatley played his entire career at Penn State, recording seven interceptions. He’s likely set to compete for a special teams role early in his career.
✅ Round 7, Pick 227 overall: Jackson Kuwatch, LB, Miami OH
The Panthers’ final pick is the team’s only selection not to come directly from a Power Four program. He started his career at Ohio State before joining the Redhawks in 2023.
Kuwatch has good size at 6-4, 235. He earned third-team All-MAC this past season, starting 14 games with 109 tackles, 10.0 tackles-for-loss and 5.0 sacks.
“He is willing to take on blocks and does a good job flowing to the ball” – Scouts Inc.
🏈 North Carolina College Players Drafted
This section will track players selected from North Carolina college programs throughout the 2026 NFL Draft.
🏈 Round 4, Pick 119 – EDGE Wesley Williams (Duke -> Jacksonville)
After the first two days of the NFL Draft, no player from a 2025 North Carolina college roster was selected. That changed on Saturday when the 2024 and 2025 honorable mention All-ACC edge rusher was picked by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Williams is a bit undersized for a defensive end (6-4, 256) but produced for Duke over three seasons. He finished with 131 total tackles, 29 tackles-for-loss and 11 sacks. His best collegiate season came in 2024: 13.5 TFLs, 7.5 sacks, a forced fumble and two blocked kicks.
🏈 Round 5, Pick 152 – TE Justin Joly (NC State -> Denver)
One of the steals of the fifth round, Joly was a first-team All-ACC pick for the Wolfpack. He made 49 catches in 2025 with seven touchdowns, a school record for tight ends. Joly (6-3, 241) played two seasons at UConn before transferring to NC State.
Denver traded up to get him. Per Sports Illustrated, Joly is the first tight end from NC State picked in the NFL Draft since Anthony Hill (Houston Texans) in 2009.
Joly beat out receiver KC Concepcion, a first-round pick of the Browns, for receiving yards in 2024, finishing with 661 and four TDs. He should be a great fit in the offense Sean Payton is building with the Broncos, a playoff team in 2025 coming off an AFC West title.
“He has very strong hands and will make contested coaches,” Scouts Inc. wrote in its post-draft analysis. “After the catch, Joly isn’t usually brought down by first contact and will pick up yards after catch.”
🏈 Round 5, Pick 162 – CB Chandler Rivers (Duke -> Baltimore)
Rivers became the second member of Duke’s 2025 ACC champion squad selected. He’s a two-time All-ACC pick – first team in 2024 and second team in 2025.
His stat line across 39 games with the Blue Devils: 32 starts, seven interceptions, 223 total tackles, 16.0 tackles-for-loss, three forced fumbles and 29 pass breakups. He’s eighth all-time at Duke for pass breakups.
🏈 Round 5, Pick 171 – CB Karon Prunty (Wake Forest -> New England)
Two North Carolina college programs can take pride in Prunty’s draft selection. Prunty started 35 games at North Carolina A&T from 2022-24 before building a third-team All-ACC resume at Wake Forest in 2025.
PFF graded Prunty, from Portsmouth, Va., as one of the top defensive players in the whole conference and the No. 2 corner. He was first-team All-Big South in 2022 and made third-team All-CAA in both 2023 and 2024 before joining the Deacs.
STORY: https://t.co/7Ao3erggKn — HBCU Sports (@HBCUSports) April 25, 2026
🏈 Round 6, Pick 189 – C Brian Parker II (Duke -> Cincinnati)
Carter started 33 games for Duke over the course of four seasons. He earned second-team All-ACC twice and was a third-team All-American (Associated Press) this past season.
Pro Football Focus noted that Carter allowed just four sacks across 1,345 pass-block snaps. He projects as an interior lineman, but his experience at both center and tackle gives Cincinnati a versatile player on the offensive line.
🏈 Round 6, Pick 198 – RB Demond Claiborne (Wake Forest -> Minnesota)
Claiborne was Wake Forest’s leading rusher the past three seasons, including galloping for 1,049 yards in 2024 and 907 this past season. He finished his college career with 2,599 rushing yards and 26 touchdowns.
His 40-yard dash time was among the fastest of all running backs at the NFL combine. Dane Brugler from The Athletic called Claiborne a “bursty athlete” and compared him to a “diet” version of Dolphins Pro Bowl running back De’Von Achane, who has 4,334 career yards and 35 TDs over three seasons in Miami.
🏈 Round 7, Pick 218 – WR Anthony Smith (ECU -> Dallas)
Smith Started 26 games in a row to close out his East Carolina career, and was one of the favored targets of quarterback Katin Houser. Smith was named Military Bowl MVP in 2025 as the Pirates beat Pittsburgh to finish off a nine-win season (156 yards, two TDs).
Smith garnered first-team all-conference recognition after accumulating 1,053 receiving yards and 7 TDs. He’ll join former ECU teammate and 2025 Cowboys draftee Shavon Revel in Dallas. The Cowboys receiving room includes veteran CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens and Ryan Flournoy.
🏈 Round 7, Pick 229 – DT Brandon Cleveland (NC State -> Las Vegas)
Cleveland spent four seasons wearing the Wolfpack Red and White, tallying 107 total tackles, 16 tackles-for-loss and six sacks at nose tackle. He has a cousin, Tyrie Cleveland, who played in the NFL for the Broncos.
“Cleveland is more plugger than playmaker, with the leverage and play strength to control the point of attack,” The Athletic’s Dane Brugler wrote. “He might not have enough upside for some schemes, but he can fight for a rotational spot patrolling the A-gaps.”
Cleveland’s selection gives NC State coach Dave Doeren 30 career draft picks since taking over in Raleigh. Cleveland maybe the most prototypical Doeren developmental talent.
“Cleveland’s growth in Raleigh was impressive to watch,” wrote Noah Fleischman from The Wolfpacker. “He went from a rotational defensive tackle his freshman year to a player that the Wolfpack barely took off the field over his final pair of campaigns to serve as one of the most consistent linemen on the roster.”
🏈 Also Noteworthy
Former Gardner-Webb defensive tackle Travis Burke was drafted in the fourth round (No. 117 overall) by the Los Angeles Chargers. Burke played at GWU in 2021 and 2022, redshirting his first season and starting 13 games the next. He then transferred to FIU before landing at Memphis for 2025, where he was all-conference.
NC High School Players Drafted
⚡️ Round 1, Pick 24 – KC Concepcion, WR, Texas A&M → Cleveland Browns
North Carolina Ties: Concepcion moved to Charlotte when was young and played for coach Brandon Wiggins at Chambers High School. Concepcion was a four-star recruit and a top-10 prospect from North Carolina coming out of high school. He spent his first two collegiate seasons at NC State before transferring to Texas A&M in 2025.
Concepcion finished his college career with a 61-catch, 919-yard season with the Aggies. He caught nine touchdown passes. Analysts agree Cleveland has big needs at wide receiver, so Concepcion should compete for snaps and targets right away.
⚡️ Round 5, Pick 145 – Nick Barrett, DT, South Carolina → Los Angeles Chargers
North Carolina Ties: Started since his freshman season at Eastern Wayne High in Goldsboro, eventually becoming a co-captain for the Warriors. Barrett missed his senior season at Eastern Wayne, played in spring 2021 due to COVID, to enroll early at South Carolina.
It took Barrett awhile to make his mark on the field, though he earned SEC All-Academic honors right away. He spent his entire career with the Gamecocks and became a starter in 2025. He led the South Carolina D-line with 42 tackles and also made 6.0 tackles-for-loss and two sacks. He returned a fumble for a TD against Texas A&M.
Barrett leaves South Carolina as a permanent team captain and co-winner of the Steve Wadiak Team MVP award.
“He didn’t get the national publicity he deserved for the year he had” – long-time draft analyst Mel Kiper said during ESPN’s draft broadcast on Saturday.
Added Scouts Inc.: “Barrett (6-3, 312) plays with pop and delivers a powerful punch that can knock offensive linemen off balance.”
🤝 UDFA Signings & Mini Camp Invites
(The dream isn’t over — it’s just beginning)
Scores of players who don’t hear their names called during the 2026 NFL Draft still may be signed as Undrafted Free Agents (UDFA) or invited to mini-camps. This section will track undrafted free agents and mini-camp invitees with ties to North Carolina.
Players from North Carolina College Programs
Appalachian State
QB Joey Aguilar → Jacksonville (Played at Tennessee in 2025)
Charlotte
DB Randy Franklin → Denver (rookie mini-camp invite)
SAF Ja’Qurious Conley → Tampa Bay
LB Reid Williford → Baltimore
LB Shay Taylor → Kansas City (rookie mini-camp invite)
WR Sean Brown → Denver
Duke
DE Vincent Anthony Jr. → Kansas City
DT Aaron Hall → Carolina
DT Josiah Green → Tampa Bay
LB Jaiden Francois → Philadelphia (rookie mini-camp invite)
OL Justin Pickett → Las Vegas
RB Anderson Castle → Indianapolis
SAF Caleb Weaver → NY Jets (rookie mini-camp invite)
WR Andrel Anthony → Atlanta
WR Sahmir Hagans → Indianapolis (rookie mini-camp invite)
East Carolina
LS Triston O’Brien → New Orleans (rookie mini-camp invite)
QB Mike Wright → Seattle (rookie mini-camp invite)
Elon
P Jeff Yurk → Denver (rookie mini-camp invite)
NC State
CB Devon Marshall → Jacksonville
EDGE Cian Slone → Las Vegas
EDGE Sabastian Harsh → Houston
LB Caden Fordham → Tampa Bay
LB Sean Brown → Tennessee
P Caden Noonkester → New Orleans (rookie mini-camp invite)
TE Cody Hardy → New Orleans
WR Wesley Grimes → San Francisco
North Carolina
CB Marcus Allen → Minnesota
CB Thaddeus Dixon → NY Giants
OL Austin Blaske → LA Rams
OL Chad Lindberg → LA Rams
OL Diego Pounds → Baltimore (Played at Ole Miss in 2025)
SAF Ja’Qurious Conley → Tampa Bay (Played at Charlotte in 2025)
North Carolina A&T
OL Korian Sharpe → Cleveland (rookie mini-camp invite)
North Carolina Central
RB J’Mari Taylor → Jacksonville (Played at Virginia in 2025)
Wake Forest
CB Lardarius Webb Jr. → Baltimore
DL Jayden Loving → Chicago
SAF Nick Andersen → LA Rams
TE Eni Falayi → Green Bay
Players from North Carolina High School Programs
- DB Devan Boykin (Greensboro | Ragsdale HS): NC State/Indiana → Pittsburgh
- DE Vincent Anthony (Durham | Jordan HS): Duke → Kansas City
- DL Travis Shaw (Greensboro | Grimsley HS): UNC/Texas → Baltimore
LB Sean Brown (Waxhaw | Marvin Ridge HS): UNCP/Charlotte → Denver
OL Korian Sharpe (Charlotte | Rocky River HS): North Carolina A&T → Cleveland minicamp invite - OL Diego Pounds (Raleigh | Millbrook HS): Ole Miss → Baltimore
P Caden Noonkester (Waxhaw | Marvin Ridge HS): NC State → New Orleans minicamp invite - RB Anderson Castle (Boone | Watauga HS): App State/Duke → Indianapolis
- K Laith Marjan (Raleigh | Enloe HS): ECU/South Alabama/Kansas → Pittsburgh
Carolina Panthers 2026 Undrafted Free Agent Tracker
- CB Cam Miller (Rutgers)
- CB DeVonta Smith (Notre Dame)
- DB Jaylon Guilbreau (Texas)
- DT Aaron Hall (Duke)
DT Parker Peterson (Wisconsin) - EDGE Isaiah Smith (SMU)
- OL Albert Reese IV (Mississippi State)
OL Isaia Glass (Vanderbilt) - QB Haynes King (Georgia Tech)
- WR Kobe Prentice (Baylor)
- WR Malick Meiga (Coastal Carolina)
WR/AP Rashad Rochelle (Indiana State) — rookie mini-camp invite
DT Amari McNeill (Colorado) — rookie mini-camp invite
An Undrafted Free Agent signs a contract and is guaranteed a spot on a team’s 90-man roster. A mini-camp invitee is invited to tryout for a roster spot during what amounts to a three-day audition with no guarantees.
Follow along all weekend as we track every Carolina Panthers pick and those with North Carolina connections.
