Why Christian McCaffrey goes into 2021 with a point to prove

Christian McCaffrey has a point to prove in 2021, which is great news for the Carolina Panthers.

The Carolina Panthers managed to win five games during the 2020 season without their best offensive weapon for the most part. Christian McCaffrey suffered a series of unfortunate injuries that restricted him to three contests, which was the worst possible timing for both the running back and the organization.

There were plenty of eyebrows raised when the Panthers gave McCaffrey a four-year, $64 million deal with a $21 million signing bonus and $38 million guaranteed before competitive action got underway.

Few would argue that the former first-round pick wasn’t worthy of such a financial commitment after coming off a 2019 campaign where he became the third player in NFL history to go over 1,000 yards rushing and receiving in the same season. But the perils of paying backs what they’re worth is there for all to see in this scenario.

Teams across the league are always wary of this thanks in no small part to the violence that comes with constant hits. Running backs tend to have a short shelf life and although McCaffrey hadn’t missed a game prior to this season, it won’t take much longer for the doubts to start creeping in about whether the Panthers made the right call.

This means McCaffrey has a real point to prove in 2021, which is something that anyone on Carolina’s schedule should look at with a significant sense of fear.