Last Thursday, less than 24 hours after the Carolina Panthers shocked the NFL by releasing Pro Bowl cornerback Josh Norman from his franchise tag, general manager Dave Gettleman was asked if the decision would affect his strategy in this week's draft.
"No," he answered, before breaking out the annual mantra. "We're going to take the best player available."
Eight days later, after the Panthers used both their picks on cornerbacks, Gettleman came clean when he was again asked if the glaring hole in the secondary required an audible in his draft philosophy.
"It did. It has to," he said.
"You have to prevent position disasters."
As of last week, the best news about Carolina's cornerback situation was de facto No. 1 Bené Benwikere was "running pretty good in the tub" during his rehab from a broken leg. So after they strengthened a strength by taking defensive tackle Vernon Butler in the first round, the Panthers went into Friday with a well-known problem in the secondary. Then they tried to fix it.
According to Gettleman, after Baylor's Xavien Howard, Clemson's Mackensie Alexander, Maryland's Sean Davis and Alabama's Cyrus Jones went in the second round, the next two corners on the Panthers' board were James Bradberry and Daryl Worley. In a span of 16 picks, Gettleman grabbed both.
"We are very pleased, to say the least. They’re both big, they’re both long, they both can run, they’re both physical and they both have really good ball skills," Gettleman said.
"The best part of this thing, I promise you, I'm not lying, we did not reach."
That's going to be a tough sell to fans hoping for a bigger name like Virginia Tech's Kendall Fuller. But this is what Gettleman does.
While a knee injury forced Fuller to fall all the way to Washington at No. 88, the Panthers were taking guys most fans had to Google. Shoot, even Bradberry wasn't expecting a call Friday night.
Like Norman, Bradberry played at a small school. The difference is the Panthers used a fifth-round pick on Norman when he was coming out of Coastal Carolina in 2012. Bradberry, who transferred from Arkansas State before he spent four years at Samford, went in the second. Few, if any, draft analysts pegged him as anything better than a third-day pick.
That's exactly how the Panthers wanted it.
"We felt because of James' small-school exposure, we thought he'd slide," Gettleman said. "We thought he'd be there in the bottom of the second, and we were fortunate."
At 6-foot-1 with long arms, Bradberry has the size and tackling ability Carolina looks for in its corners. And sure, the NFL is a big step up from the Southern Conference, but the Panthers' zone schemes can buy a guy time to develop.
Worley, who has a similar 6-foot-1 frame as Bradberry, had the same second-round grade. So when the Panthers saw Worley sliding into the third, they jumped, switching spots with the Browns in a trade that let Gettleman jump 16 spots.
"It's like seeing that pretty girl and, do I ask her out, do I not ask her out? And you don't, and you kick yourself in the fanny," he joked. "It's the same thing. You trust in your ability to evaluate players, and you know what the guy's value is, you have to go get him."
To get their guy, the Panthers gave Cleveland their fourth-round pick. But the deal also included a swap of fifth-rounders, which improved Carolina's position 27 spots in that round.
Worley left West Virginia after he finished among the nation's leaders with six interceptions and 12 pass breakups as a junior. He brings some baggage, but the Panthers are convinced that's in the past.
So even though he took a couple guys many may not know, Friday was a day Gettleman was hoping for. And now he can admit it.
"Very honestly, if you told me two nights ago we were going to come out with Vernon Butler and these two corners, I would've been very happy," Gettleman said.
"Again, I don't feel like we reached, I know we didn't reach. We didn't. And I'm excited about it."