The NFL Draft is arguably the most important off-season time for any team, Carolina Panthers included, because it gives everyone an opportunity to fix holes on their roster and prepare for the next season.
As players age or injuries occur, the draft picks selected every April ultimately can set a team up for success or failure during the coming year. Following is a review of the Panthers running back position and the production those draft picks produced during their rookie seasons.
Let’s take a look at which home-grown Panthers made an immediate contribution to the team.
| Carolina Panthers Drafted Running Backs: Rookie Season | ||||||||||
| Year | Name | Rd | Pick | RusY | RusTD | Rec | RecY | RecTD | YScm | TD’s |
| 1996 | Tim Biakabutuka | 1st | 8 | 229 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 229 | 0 |
| 1996 | Winslow Oliver | 3rd | 73 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | Marquette Smith | 5th | 142 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | Scott Greene | 6th | 193 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| 2001 | Dee Brown | 6th | 175 | 360 | 4 | 27 | 86 | 1 | 446 | 5 |
| 2002 | DeShaun Foster | 2nd | 34 | 429 | 0 | 26 | 207 | 2 | 636 | 2 |
| 2002 | Kyle Johnson | 5th | 145 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | Casey Moore | 7th | 247 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2005 | Eric Shelton | 2nd | 54 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | DeAngelo Williams | 1st | 27 | 501 | 1 | 33 | 313 | 1 | 814 | 2 |
| 2008 | Jonathan Stewart | 1st | 13 | 836 | 10 | 8 | 47 | 0 | 883 | 10 |
| 2009 | Mike Goodson | 4th | 111 | 49 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 0 | 64 | 0 |
| 2009 | Tony Fiammetta | 4th | 128 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | Kenjon Barner | 6th | 182 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| 2014 | Tyler Gaffney | 6th | 182 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | Cameron Artis-Payne | 5th | 174 | 183 | 1 | 5 | 58 | 0 | 241 | 1 |
| 2017 | Christian McCaffrey | 1st | 8 | 435 | 2 | 80 | 651 | 5 | 1086 | 7 |
- 1995: No running back draft selections
- 1996: The first running back drafted by the Panthers was Tim Biakabutuka, selected with the eighth overall pick.