When it comes to the Carolina Panthers‘ most glaring needs, the wide receiver position is no doubt one of them.
A trio of Adan Thielen, Jalen Coker and Xavier Legette leaves a lot to be desired. While Thielen showed he’s got some gas left in the tank in 2024, he should not be a No. 1 at this stage in his career, but he effectively would be entering the 2025 season thanks to the inexperience of Coker and Legette.
Adding to all that, the Panthers could use someone who will be a long-term solution and legitimate No. 1 option for Bryce Young continue to grow.
In the opinion of Bleacher Report’s Mitch Milani, New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson is a sneaky trade candidate this offseason.
And, if he’s made available, Milani thinks the Panthers could get involved in a deal for Wilson. He also proposes a trade that would net the Panthers Wilson in exchange for a 2026 first-round pick.
Wilson would be just what the doctor ordered for the Panthers. The former first-round pick has broken 1,000 yards in each of his three seasons in the NFL, and he has done so despite having a perennially shaky-at-best quarterback situation.
There’s no question Wilson has the goods to be an elite wide receiver in the NFL if he can get more steady quarterback play. Assuming he keeps moving in the right direction, Young could offer that for the Ohio State product.
Giving up a first-round pick for Wilson would be steep, especially when you consider it could be a premium one, but at least he’s under contract for two more seasons when you include his fifth-year option, and he’ll be 25 in July, so he is young enough to be the long-term answer on the boundary that the Panthers need.
All that said, there has been no indication that the Jets are even considering trading Wilson, and it wouldn’t really make much sense to do so considering New York’s poor wide receiver situation.
He was reportedly disgruntled last season, but the cause of that frustration, Aaron Rodgers, is now gone. Furthermore, turning over a new leaf at head coach with Aaron Glenn and at quarterback with his old Ohio State teammate, Justin Fields, could change things.
We remain extremely skeptical that the Jets will move Wilson this offseason, but if they do, the Panthers should be all in on a trade for him.