5 potentially grave errors made by the Carolina Panthers this offseason
By Dean Jones
Carolina Panthers passed on Justin Fields
Sam Darnold deserved a chance to prove he was a serviceable quarterback after a torrid three years with the New York Jets. But judging by his efforts in the preseason, it appears the hype surrounding Justin Fields is justified.
The Carolina Panthers had a big decision to make this offseason after clearly deciding that Teddy Bridgewater was not the man to lead them moving forward. After failed attempts to land Matthew Stafford and Deshaun Watson, they settled on acquiring Darnold for three draft selections in the hope he can turn things around.
Despite this move, many thought Carolina would contemplate selecting Fields if he was still on the board at No. 8 overall, which proved to be the case.
Instead, the Panthers went with cornerback Jaycee Horn out of South Carolina. Leaving the Chicago Bears trading up to secure Fields at No. 11.
Horn looks like the real deal and should provide immediate assistance. However, no position moves the needle like a quarterback and once Fields gets the nod over Andy Dalton, he’ll set about proving those who wrote him off wrong.
Fields would have provided far more excitement and anticipation than Darnold. So the onus is on the USC product to repay the faith shown in him by Carolina’s decision-makers.