3 best non-NFC South games on the Panthers 2021 schedule

Carolina Panthers vs. New York Jets (Week 1)

Let’s give the NFL schedule-makers a pat on the back for this one.

In Week 1, the Carolina Panthers will open their season at home against Sam Darnold’s former employer, the New York Jets. While it normally doesn’t take much to get players and fans excited for opening weekend, this game adds some extra spice to kick off the season at what should be a packed Bank of America Stadium.

After three underwhelming seasons, the Jets hit the reset button by trading Darnold to the Panthers back in April.

With the second overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft, the Jets took Zach Wilson of BYU to be their new signal caller. But this shouldn’t have come as too much of a surprise when New York hired former San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh as their next head coach.

To be fair, it will take much more than the result of this game to decide who won the trade.

Still, Darnold and wide receiver Robby Anderson, should be excited to get revenge against their former team in what should be a fantastic atmosphere to play in.

Carolina is 4-3 all-time against the Jets with a record of 3-1 at home and 1-2 on the road at New York. At least from the outside looking in, this represents a good opportunity for Darnold and the Panthers to get their season off on the right foot in front of their home fans.