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What Panthers GM Dan Morgan said about trading Jonathan Mingo to Cowboys at NFL trade deadline

Matt Alquiza

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Long after we depart from this earth and NFL games are being played in primetime from locations such as the moon or Mars, pundits will still be discussing the calamitous 2023 NFL Draft that the Carolina Panthers put together. At the heart of the calamity was the selection of Jonathan Mingo in the second round, a wide receiver that was never able to put it together in his brief stint with the Panthers.

Mingo, an Ole Miss product, boasts career totals of 55 catches, 539 receiving yards, and zero touchdowns. What would be a disappointing month for elite receivers like Justin Jefferson and Ja'Marr Chase is a 24 game sample size for Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys newest weapon. Panthers general manager Dan Morgan spoke on the trade during Wednesday's media availabilty.

Morgan: It was a "win-win" for both teams

Here are Morgan's full comments on the trade: "He's (Mingo) a great player, a still developing player. I thought it was a good deal between us and Dallas. They get a young player that they can grow and develop, and we get a draft pick that we're happy with. It was a win-win for both sides."

Mingo had been squeezed out of the Panthers receiving rotation in recent weeks by upstart rookie Jalen Coker and first-round selection Xavier Legette. In Carolina's most recent contest against the New Orleans Saints, Mingo played 28% of snaps (15 total), a dramatic fall-off from early in 2024 when he was consistently logging burn on 60% or more of the Panthers plays. Morgan was asked about how much the trade of Mingo to Dallas (for a fourth-round pick in return) was due to the ascension of players like Coker and Legette.

Morgan on the growth of Carolina's youth movement

"I think it has to do a little bit with it, just building too. I think we're trying to build the roster the right way, and that's through the draft. We're definitely excited about a lot of our young guys. We're excited about a lot of guys on our roster in general, so, I like the direction we're headed and we just have to keep building and growing this thing."

The Panthers have been universally praised for the trade of Mingo to Dallas. To be fair, the young wide receiver has plenty of margin to develop into a player of note, but Mingo is statistically one of, if not the worst wide receivers to play this century. His 0.75 yards per route run is dead last among all receivers that have caught 50+ passes since Y2K, and his 5.4% drop rate is also dead last.

It's a shame that Mingo never worked out in Carolina, but fans of the team can be grateful for the growth of Legette and Coker making him expendable so quickly. Carolina's willingness to dump a failing asset is a sign of growth, and the exact thing that made David Tepper rich enough to own an NFL team in the first place. The trade of Mingo is just a small move, but it is a sign that things are trending the right way on Mint Street

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Matt Alquiza
MATT ALQUIZA

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