The NFL draft starts Saturday. What are the Panthers up to?

The simple answer is probably not a lot. They only have five picks over the draft’s seven rounds (no first or seventh rounders) and because they went 12-4 in the regular season last year their picks are late in the rounds that they do have picks.

The Panthers are also very salary cap tight because of their putting a franchise tag on Julius Peppers at an above market rate. Presuming Pep doesn’t get traded, that means they have to make every dollar count. And the draft is a way to obtain talent at low dollar costs. So what can we expect?

Defensive tackle: The Panthers biggest need. The two starters, Maake Kemoeatu and Damione Lewis, are both north of 30 and it’s questionable whether the other DTs on the roaster are ready yet/are impact players. The Panthers simply need to get younger here. This is also the position were a rookie could see really playing time (defensive linemen rotate to keep them fresh). The odds on place were the Panthers spend their first pick (#59 overall) if they don’t trade JP.

Corner back: After cutting Ken Lucas, the Panthers are in the market for another cornerback to add depth. It’s not as much of a need as DT but still something the Panthers will want to address sooner rather than later in the draft. Best guess is their third rounder (#93 overall) subject to exactly who is available.

Defensive end: Does Pep stay or go? That’s the big question for the Panthers. Even if he stays in 2009, it’s doubtful he’s here in 2010 (year older, even higher franchise tag figure). If he stays, another DE is a possibility in this draft. If he goes, it’s probably a necessity though maybe still a lesser need than DT as the Panthers have more depth and upside at DE even without Pep than they have at DT.

Linebacker: The conventional wisdom is that the Panthers are set at linebacker. The conventional wisdom is wrong. They are set at middle and weakside linebacker (Jon Beason and Thomas Davis respectively). Beyond that it gets murky fast. Na’il Diggs has started for the Panthers the past few years but turns 31 in July. Landon Johnson was brought in last year for big bucks to challenge Diggs but was a major disappointment (16 tackles all season, most on special teams). James Anderson, now in his fourth year, was apparently sucked off the planet Earth for about a year stretch. Or at least it seemed that way, as he wasn’t getting a jersey on Sundays. Dan Connor may be Diggs’ heir apparent, but he’s only in his second year and is coming off a torn ACL he suffered early last season.

The Panthers like drafting LBs as special teams players if nothing else and I don’t expect this year to be any different given all the question marks at the position. Expect maybe a 5th (#163 overall) or 6th round (#202) pick here.

Safety: Both starters and backups are back under contract for next year. If the Panthers had more picks, I could imagine they drafting someone to compete for a job. The Panthers don’t have that luxury, so don’t expect them to take a safety unless they feel someone is very talented relative to the draft position.