4 winners and 4 losers from the Carolina Panthers 2021 season
By Jason Huber
Zane Gonzalez – Carolina Panthers K
When your kicker is named one of the winners for the season, that’s how bad of a year it was.
One tried looking for any possible other winners and while the rookies such as Chuba Hubbard, who saw impactful playing time could be one, Zane Gonzalez’s 12 games since joining the team a few weeks in were more meaningful than anyone else.
Before disaster hit the Carolina Panthers, a kicker was one of the biggest issues that they had entering the season. After trying Ryan Santoso for a week, Gonzalez came in and quickly nailed down the job.
A leg injury kept him out for the final three games, but Gonzalez finished the year connecting on 20-of-22 field goal attempts and making 22-of-23 extra-point tries.
It’s almost as if Gonzalez improved each week and he likely will be the team’s main kicker next season barring any injury setbacks. He also nailed three field goals 50 yards or longer to further stake his claims for a deserved contract extension.
He might just be a kicker, but Gonzalez deserves major props for how he bounced back this season and especially as the Panthers didn’t see enough to bring him on board during a mandatory minicamp trial.