5 shining stars from the Carolina Panthers win at Texans in Week 3
By Dean Jones
Sam Darnold – Carolina Panthers QB
When the Carolina Panthers needed Sam Darnold to come through in the absence of Christian McCaffrey, the quarterback delivered.
Another significant milestone on his road to redemption.
Things could have gone either way, in all honesty. McCaffrey’s injury had a hugely detrimental effect on his teammates in the second quarter. But credit to Darnold and the Panthers, they regrouped at the halftime break and saw out the contest in a comfortable fashion.
Darnold was sensational on Thursday night. He distributed the football extremely well and displayed the sort of leadership that the team was looking for when they acquired the USC product from the New York Jets this offseason.
There is still a long way to go for Darnold, but the early indications are that he was a product of his environment at MetLife Stadium. Something rookie Zach Wilson is finding out to his cost over the first three games of his professional career.
The offensive line in front of Darnold needs to do more. Especially against better opposition in the coming weeks.
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However, the signal-caller is generating some real momentum and is slowly but surely proving his doubters wrong in a different environment.