Why Anthony Richardson is very much in play for Panthers with top pick

The last time the Panthers had the No. 1 overall pick, they selected Cam Newton — an athletic, big-bodied, mobile passer with a rocket arm whom Richardson has been compared to a lot during the pre-draft process.

The two have similar builds and comparable speed. Newton was 6-foot-5 and 248 pounds and logged the third-fastest 40 time among QBs at the combine in his draft year (4.56 seconds). Richardson is 6-foot-4 and 244 pounds, and his 4.43 40-time was the fastest among his position group this year.

The major difference between Newton and Richardson, however, is the latter comes with more questions about his accuracy, decision making and awareness. 

Newton had a 66.1 completion percentage and threw for nearly four times as many touchdowns as interceptions at Auburn the year he came out. Richardson completed just 53.8 percent of his passes this year with 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Although Richardson appears to be a more raw prospect than Newton was, Reich doesn’t seem to be turned off by anything he’s seen on the junior QB’s film.

“I think he has upper-body mechanics that are really solid,” Reich added. “Obviously, his completion percentage is lower than you want at this level, but I don’t get too discouraged with things like that.”