2011 NFL Mock Draft: Carolina Panthers Take Cam Newton

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The storylines of the 2011 NFL draft have been swirling around Cam Newton and the rare potential of this defensive line class. Newton is seen by many to be one of the toughest prospects to predict, which has helped make him the hottest topic of the draft.

Although, his transition into the NFL has been heavily questioned, his draft stock doesn't reveal that at all.

Newton has ultimately been projected to be selected within the first four picks in the majority of mock drafts.

With the CBA questions looming over the draft, many teams will be forced to make decisions that aren't in the norm come April 28th. Since the unfinished CBA has disabled teams from any offseason moves, not only will teams not be able to operate as usual, but many teams will also be forced to put need over value when drafting the future of their franchise in this draft.

With over one-fourth of the teams quarterback-needy, I believe this is the most intriguing aspect of this draft.

What do Carolina, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Arizona, San Francisco, Tennessee, Washington, Miami, Seattle and arguably Oakland and Denver have in common?

They all need a quarterback.

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That's an awful lot of franchises in need of the game's most important positional player, and with no way to sign a QB through free agency (until the lockout is over), this creates somewhat of a sense of urgency for these teams.

The general consensus is that Cam Newton and Blaine Gabbert will both be gone by the time the ninth pick is on the clock, and the other QB prospects are basically in a gray area.

The most notable of the "second-tier QB prospects" are Jake Locker, Ryan Mallett, Christian Ponder, Andy Dalton and Colin Kaepernick. What their destinations might be are much in question.

The two wild cards of those QBs are Locker and Mallett, who I believe could go anywhere from the eighth overall pick to the 43rd overall pick. Both players have the kind of potential that could have them as high as a top-two QB on some teams' boards.

Some teams will go with a proven veteran and some will enter into the Kevin Kolb sweepstakes.

It will be interesting to see how the quarterback lottery plays out and which teams feel the pressure to draft a QB come draft day.

Now, here for my predictions:

1. Carolina Panthers: Cam Newton, QB, Auburn
2. Denver Broncos: Marcell Dareus, DT, Alabama
3. Buffalo Bills: Von Miller, OLB, Texas A&M
4. Cincinnati Bengals: Blaine Gabbert, QB, Missouri
5. Arizona Cardinals: Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU
6. Cleveland Browns: AJ Green, WR, Georgia
7. San Francisco 49ers: Robert Quinn, OLB/DE, North Carolina
8. Tennessee Titans: Nick Fairley, DT, Auburn
9. Dallas Cowboys: JJ Watt, DE, Wisconsin
10. Washington Redskins: Julio Jones, WR, Alabama
11. Houston Texans: Prince Amukamara, CB, Nebraska
12. Minnesota Vikings: Corey Liuget, DT, Illinois
13. Detroit Lions: Anthony Costanzo, OT, Boston College
14. St. Louis Rams: Da'Quan Bowers, DE, Clemson
15. Miami Dolphins: Ryan Mallett, QB, Arkansas
16. Jacksonville Jaguars: Aldon Smith, DE, Missouri
17. New England Patriots(from Oakland): Cameron Jordan, DE, California
18. San Diego Chargers: Tyron Smith, OT, USC
19. New York Giants: Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Ryan Kerrigan, DE, Purdue
21. Kansas City Chiefs: Nate Solder, OT, Colorado
22. Indianapolis Colts: Gabe Carimi, OT, Wisconsin
23. Philadelphia Eagles: Mike Pouncey, OG/C, Florida
24. New Orleans Saints: Adrian Clayborn, DE, Iowa
25. Seattle Seahawks: Andy Dalton, QB, TCU
26. Baltimore Ravens: Jimmy Smith, CB, Colorado
27. Atlanta Falcons: Kyle Rudolph, TE, Notre Dame
28. New England Patriots: Akeem Ayers, OLB, UCLA
29. Chicago Bears: Muhammad Wilkerson, DL, Temple
30. New York Jets: Justin Houston, OLB/DE, Georgia
31. Pittsburgh Steelers: Danny Watkins, OG, Baylor
32. Green Bay Packers: Cameron Heyward, DE, Ohio St.

For an explanation of each pick please check out Dolphin Shout Mock Draft.