Are the Panthers Set at Quarterback?

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

If you don’t feel like reading, then I’ll save you some time.  The answer is yes.  At least for now.  But we’ll get to that in a second.  When the Panthers traded three draft picks (a 2021 6th rounder, and a 2022 2nd and 4th rounder) to get quarterback Sam Darnold from the Jets, fans had mixed feelings about it as usual.  But if you’re a Panthers fan, you have to be happy about this trade.  It was a great deal for Carolina.  Darnold was the 3rd overall pick just a few years ago, so you know he has great potential.  And the three draft picks Carolina traded weren’t going to be a big factor for this team.  Darnold could be.

panthers.com

I say could be because I don’t know if Sam Darnold will turn his career around.  You don’t know and the Panthers don’t know.  But hey, it’s definitely worth a shot for Carolina.  It’s a low risk, high reward.  Personally, I believe that Darnold can still be a really good quarterback.  I mean let’s think about it for a second…how many quarterbacks are going to succeed playing for today’s New York Jets?  And under Adam Gase?  He never had much of a chance.  Now he has a better chance.  Having Christian McCaffrey around him already helps.  Many times all it takes is a new system, coaches, etc. for a player to revitalize his career and this very well could be the case for Darnold.  I hope so.

Now what do the Panthers do with that #8 overall pick in this upcoming draft?  Anyone who says “draft a quarterback” is crazy.  First of all this is not a deep quarterback draft at all.  After Lawrence at #1, no quarterback (in my opinion) is very exciting.  Drafting Zach Wilson, Trey Lance, and Justin Fields as high as they will be drafted is reaching, plain and simple.  And franchises who continue to reach for mediocre quarterbacks with high draft picks are those who continue to fail and be in the same draft situation every few years.  The Panthers don’t need to be one of them.

With Darnold on the team now, it is almost like they just drafted a first round quarterback.  He’s still very young and you don’t know what he’ll bring to the team, just like any rookie quarterback.  Except one huge difference: he’s got a few years of experience under his belt.  The Panthers are ready to move forward, at least for this year and possibly next, with their quarterback position.  Now they have a prime opportunity to use that precious #8 overall pick and not waste it by reaching for a quarterback, but instead draft the best available talent.  An offensive lineman would be great.  Good teams have good offensive lines, plain and simple, and that’s an area of need for Carolina.  It doesn’t matter who the quarterback is if the line is bad.

Panthers fans should be very happy right now.  Darnold is a step up from Bridgewater, who is a career back-up talent (he’s a good guy, he just will never have long-term starter potential).  And that first round draft pick becomes freed up to take a player who is ready to help the team now.  If Darnold doesn’t work out, then the Panthers can look at their options next year in what should be a better quarterback draft.  The team is rebuilding right now anyway, so it’s not there is pressure to win right now.  Like I said, it’s a low risk, high reward situation and I’m ready to see how it plays out.

Garett