Panthers Rookie Profile: Trevin Wallace

The new Panthers linebacker might have the right mentality, but what else can be expected from the 72nd overall pick?

If you’ve heard it once, you have heard it a thousand times: Carolina Panthers general manager Dan Morgan wants some ‘dawgs’ on his team. He may even want dawgs more than former GM Dave Gettleman wanted hog mollies, and that’s really saying something. Did Morgan keep his word, did he target dawgs in this draft?

Well, Trevin Wallace seems to think so. Wallace, the former Kentucky Wildcat who was selected by the Panthers with the 72nd overall pick after a trade down with the New York Jets, was asked to describe what he thinks it means to have a dawg mentality:

Trevin Wallace: You go in there and hurt somebody and you be like ‘Hey, I did this and imma do it again… you don’t go in there being soft, you go in there like I’m gonna hurt you every play. I want you to be scared of me’

For those who watch on Sundays instead of play, that may seem a little over the top, but is that soundbite over the top for Dan Morgan? Take a listen to how Dan Morgan describes a ‘dawg’ during his now infamous introductory press conference, I’ll let you be the judge:

Dan Morgan: We need guys that are hungry to go out there and inflict pain on their opponents.

If you were looking for the reason why Morgan wanted to draft Wallace, there it is.

Unfortunately, there’s a little more to player evaluation than just checking of a box beside the word “dawg”. With Frankie Luvu gone to the Washington Commanders and Shaq Thompson coming back from consecutive injury-riddle seasons, now seems like as good of a time as any to start re-building the room that has long been a strength for the Carolina Panthers. Can Wallace be that guy?

At Kentucky, where Wallace spent all three of his college seasons, he finished his final year tallying 80 tackles with 5.5 sacks and an interception. After being a team captain in 2023, Wallace decided to forgo his last year of eligibility and declare for the 2024 NFL Draft.

Standing at 6’1 and 237 lbs, the 21 year old Wallace is a strong athlete, posting a 4.51 40 yard dash along with a 37.5 inch vertical jump and 10’7 broad jump, all three of which ranking in the 91st percentile or better since 1987, according to his RAS profile.

His measured athleticism is impressive, but what’s most important is that it shows up on the field too. Wallace can play from sideline-to-sideline to chase down ball-carriers and mirror routes from backs coming out of the backfield. Wallace has the smoothness in his hips and feet to succeed in pass-coverage. When he was called to rush the passer, he was productive as he ended the 2023 season third in both pressures and sacks for the Kentucky defense.

While Wallace plays physical and with good burst, he is still very raw in a lot aspects of the linebacker position. He’s more reactive than he is instinctive, as he frequently gets caught taking the bait on misdirection plays in both the run and pass game. More often than you would like, Wallace will get stuck on blockers and not be able to shed and get to the ball carrier in time.

In the short term, Wallace should become a plus-level special teamer as his demeanor and athleticism make him a perfect candidate to make plays on 4th down and during the leagues new kick-off rules. Expect him to start his career as a back-up weakside linebacker and develop his skillset from there. If he does see the field during his first year, the front line consisting of talented run-stoppers A’Shawn Robsinson, Derrick Brown and Jadeveon Clowney should definitely help keep blockers off him and free him up to track down the ball carrier. On passing downs, he does have the skillset to contribute immediately to cover running backs and tight ends while also being a legitimate threat to the quarterback on blitzes.

While Wallace was selected higher than where most media draft boards projected him to go, leaving many fans calling his selection a reach, he does have the legitimate upside to be a true three down linebacker with the floor of being a solid special teams player.

If it can all come together for Wallace, he could be a similar player to San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw, whose scouting report coming out of college has many of the themes that were discussed above for Wallace’s breakdown. If the third rounder doesn’t put it all together like Morgan and the rest of the Panthers front office hope, he could also be another Brandon Smith for the Panthers, whose elite athletic traits couldn’t translate to NFL production. It would be a shame to see another high-potential Panthers linebacker not afforded any patience and being cut before his second year in the NFL begins.

Only time will tell, but if there is a real plan in place to use him in the short-term and develop him as the heir apparent to veteran Shaq Thompson, Wallace may surprise some people.