3 hurdles Robby Anderson must overcome with the Panthers in 2020
By Dean Jones
Deep ball problems?
The Carolina Panthers invested a lot in making Teddy Bridgewater their franchise quarterback this offseason. They gave the former New Orleans Saint a three-year, $63 million deal with a $15 million signing bonus and $33 million guaranteed during free agency. But the pressure will be well and truly on the signal-caller as he looks to fill the enormous void left by Cam Newton.
Bridgewater is an accurate distributor who enjoyed a tremendous amount of success replacing Drew Brees under center in 2019. It’s easy to forget he was once one of the NFL’s brightest young quarterbacks before his devastating leg injury. And having players like Robby Anderson around him is going to do wonders for his chances of making another go of a prominent starting chance.
If there was one concern when it comes to Bridgewater, it is his ability to thrown deep. The former Louisville standout accounted for 22 bad thrown according to Pro Football Reference in 2019, and most of these came from throws of more than 20 yards.
Should this trend continue next season, it has the potential to impact Anderson more than most. He relies heavily on getting yards from deep routes consistently. But Bridgewater has only been asked to manage games as he builds back up confidence.
More will be asked of the quarterback in Carolina. And a player like Anderson will be counting on him to deliver the goods.