4 burning questions the Carolina Panthers must answer in 2020

Carolina Panthers Question No. 2: Is Teddy Bridgewater the long-term answer at QB?

One of the more eye-catching moves made by the Carolina Panthers was bringing quarterback Teddy Bridgewater in from the New Orleans Saints. The former first-round pick signed a three-year, $63 million deal that included a $15 million signing bonus and $33 million guaranteed. And this represented a strong commitment from an organization that didn’t have much in the way of financial resources available.

Bridgewater is under the microscope in no uncertain terms in 2020. The Panthers decided to go with him instead of iconic figure Cam Newton, who is now on the New England Patriots after spending three months on the free-agent scrapheap.

Although Carolina’s fanbase is understandably loyal to Newton given what the player gave to the franchise. It is extremely hard to root against Bridgewater.

The signal-caller has worked exceptionally hard to recover from a career-threatening leg injury to be a starter once again. But that does not detract from the fact there are still some lingering doubts about his ability to fill the void long-term.

If the Panthers are in a position to take a top quarterback prospect such as Trevor Lawrence or Justin Fields in the 2021 NFL Draft, it is going to be hard to pass up. Bridgewater will need to perform well to avoid such a complication down the line. And Carolina does have an out regarding his deal in two years that could save them $21 million in cap space.