Carolina Panthers
Battle card · first-round draft history, season-by-season record, and how Panthers top picks have shaped the franchise.
R1 Picks
32
Hall of Famers
2
6.2% hit rate
Avg pick slot
16.0
Highest pick
#1
Cam Newton · 2011
All-time record
227–273–1
0.454 win %
Playoff seasons
9
of 31
The Story
- Carolina Panthers have made 32 first-round selections and produced 2 Hall of Famers (6.2% hit rate).
- Their highest selection on record is #1 overall in 2011, when they took Cam Newton.
- Across 31 seasons in this dataset they have a 227-273-1 record (0.454) and reached the playoffs 9 times.
- In seasons after holding at least one top-10 pick, Carolina Panthers added an average of 2.3 wins versus the prior year (11 such seasons in the data).
- Their most-drafted position group is DL, taken 6 times in Round 1.
- Miami (FL) is their go-to talent pipeline, supplying 2 first-round picks.
- Their best season was 2015: 15-1-0 (+192 point differential).
- Their worst was 2001: 1-15-0 (-157 point differential).
Wins per Season
R1 Pick Slot by Year
Position Breakdown
Point Differential by Season
Impact of Top-10 Picks (Next-Season Wins Delta)
| Draft Year | Pick | Player | Prior-Year Wins | New-Year Wins | Delta | HoF? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | #8 | Tim Biakabutuka | 7 | 12 | +5 | |
| 2002 | #2 | Julius Peppers | 1 | 7 | +6 | HoF |
| 2003 | #8 | Jordan Gross | 7 | 11 | +4 | |
| 2011 | #1 | Cam Newton | 2 | 6 | +4 | |
| 2012 | #9 | Luke Kuechly | 6 | 7 | +1 | HoF |
| 2017 | #8 | Christian McCaffrey | 6 | 11 | +5 | |
| 2020 | #7 | Derrick Brown | 5 | 5 | +0 | |
| 2021 | #8 | Jaycee Horn | 5 | 5 | +0 | |
| 2022 | #6 | Ikem Ekwonu | 5 | 7 | +2 | |
| 2023 | #1 | Bryce Young | 7 | 2 | -5 | |
| 2025 | #8 | Tetairoa McMillan | 5 | 8 | +3 |
Hall of Fame Selections
| Year | Pick | Player | Pos | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | #2 | Julius Peppers | DE | North Carolina |
| 2012 | #9 | Luke Kuechly | LB | Boston Col. |
Every First-Round Pick
| Year | Pick | Player | Pos | College | HoF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | #5 | Kerry Collins | QB | Penn St. | |
| 1995 | #22 | Tyrone Poole | DB | Fort Valley St. | |
| 1995 | #29 | Blake Brockermeyer | T | Texas | |
| 1996 | #8 | Tim Biakabutuka | RB | Michigan | |
| 1997 | #27 | Rae Carruth | WR | Colorado | |
| 1998 | #14 | Jason Peter | DE | Nebraska | |
| 2000 | #23 | Rashard Anderson | DB | Jackson St. | |
| 2001 | #11 | Dan Morgan | LB | Miami (FL) | |
| 2002 | #2 | Julius Peppers | DE | North Carolina | HoF |
| 2003 | #8 | Jordan Gross | T | Utah | |
| 2004 | #28 | Chris Gamble | DB | Ohio St. | |
| 2005 | #14 | Thomas Davis | LB | Georgia | |
| 2006 | #27 | DeAngelo Williams | RB | Memphis | |
| 2007 | #25 | Jon Beason | LB | Miami (FL) | |
| 2008 | #13 | Jonathan Stewart | RB | Oregon | |
| 2008 | #19 | Jeff Otah | T | Pittsburgh | |
| 2011 | #1 | Cam Newton | QB | Auburn | |
| 2012 | #9 | Luke Kuechly | LB | Boston Col. | HoF |
| 2013 | #14 | Star Lotulelei | DT | Utah | |
| 2014 | #28 | Kelvin Benjamin | WR | Florida St. | |
| 2015 | #25 | Shaq Thompson | OLB | Washington | |
| 2016 | #30 | Vernon Butler | DT | Louisiana Tech | |
| 2017 | #8 | Christian McCaffrey | RB | Stanford | |
| 2018 | #24 | D.J. Moore | WR | Maryland | |
| 2019 | #16 | Brian Burns | DE | Florida St. | |
| 2020 | #7 | Derrick Brown | DT | Auburn | |
| 2021 | #8 | Jaycee Horn | DB | South Carolina | |
| 2022 | #6 | Ikem Ekwonu | T | North Carolina St. | |
| 2023 | #1 | Bryce Young | QB | Alabama | |
| 2024 | #32 | Xavier Legette | WR | South Carolina | |
| 2025 | #8 | Tetairoa McMillan | WR | Arizona | |
| 2026 | #19 | Monroe Freeling | OT | Georgia |