5 franchise-altering questions remaining for the Carolina Panthers
By Dean Jones
What are the Carolina Panthers going to do at QB?
Let’s not beat around the bush here.
The Carolina Panthers have seriously mismanaged the quarterback position from the moment Matt Rhule took over as head coach.
Cam Newton was released and brought back, Teddy Bridgewater lasted just one season, giving up three draft picks for Sam Darnold was a gamble that didn’t pay off, and P.J. Walker seems nothing more than a solid backup option at best.
That’s not forgetting the Panthers passed on the opportunity to potentially solidify the most important position on the field long-term by ignoring Justin Fields and Mac Jones in the 2021 NFL Draft.
There doesn’t seem to be a clear plan at all.
Newton coming back seemed like a desperate ploy to get the fans back onside. Although it worked for a fortnight, a veteran signal-caller coming to the party late was only going to paper over the cracks for so long.
Carolina picked up Darnold’s fifth-year option at $18.85 million. This further complicates matters as it’s clear as day the former USC star is not a viable starting option.
Couple this with a draft class that’s not exactly stellar and another free-agent pool of suspect performers, the Panthers could be in quarterback purgatory for a while yet.
Perhaps giving Newton a full offseason in this scheme might be the smart way to go. But there is absolutely no trusting the current regime when it comes to making the correct choices in this critical area of the field.