The Carolina Panthers have scheduled a pre-draft meeting with Ohio State defensive lineman Dre'Mont Jones, according to James Layton of Red Zone Insider.
The Cleveland Browns and Denver Broncos also have pre-draft visits planned with Jones.
Jones is coming off of a terrific junior campaign at Ohio State in which he racked up 43 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, an interception, a forced fumble, three fumble recoveries and a pair of defensive touchdowns.
The 22-year-old red-shirted during his first year at the school and then made his debut in 2016, finishing with 51 tackles and four tackles for loss during his freshman year.
Then, the following season, Jones oddly regressed a bit, totaling 20 tackles, five tackles for loss and a sack before breaking out as a junior.
At the NFL Scouting Combine, Jones registered a time of 5.12 seconds during the 40-yard dash, 7.71 seconds in the cone drill and 4.53 seconds in the 20-yard shuttle run.
Jones is expected by most to go somewhere between the second and third rounds.
Given the fact that the Panthers ranked just 27th in the league with 35 sacks this past season, they can certainly use all of the help they can get in terms of rushing the passer, and Jones may end up fitting that bill.
Carolina won just seven games in 2018 in spite of a 6-2 start to the season.
The Panthers fell apart in the second half largely due to a persistent shoulder issue plaguing quarterback Cam Newton, who was shut down over the final two games of the regular season and then underwent arthroscopic surgery afterward to repair the injury.
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