Panthers QB Sam Darnold deservedly benched at NY Giants
By Dean Jones
It was seemingly inevitable, but Carolina Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold was mercifully benched in the fourth quarter at the New York Giants.
The quarterback was once again inept throughout the Week 7 matchup before he was sent to the sidelines, which casts further doubt about Darnold and his long-term future in Carolina.
In truth, Darnold can have absolutely no complaints.
There is just something missing where the signal-caller is concerned without Christian McCaffrey alongside him in the backfield and this lack of confidence is transitioning to those looking to catch passes from the former first-round pick.
Just where the Panthers and Darnold go from here is uncertain.
His strong opening to the campaign has now completely evaporated and if things don’t start improving soon, it’s going to leave the Panthers back to square one regarding the most important position on the field.
Darnold was hesitant in the pocket behind an offensive line that was much-improved on the whole. But if the first read wasn’t there, the player was either unable to progress reads quick enough or scrambled out in a panic.
Sam Darnold is on the hot seat.
Make no mistake, this leaves Darnold firmly on the hot seat. These were winnable games for Carolina in pursuit of reaching the postseason, but the USC product has clearly held them back with his inconsistent production under center.
He can have absolutely no groans about this benching. And it’s going to take a huge test of character for Darnold to turn things around.
In truth, he might already be past the point of no return.
The Giants were 1-5 and no world-beaters. Darnold just made them look that way.