5 critical observations from Panthers HC Matt Rhule’s 2021 season

Matt Rhule is having trouble evaluating QBs

Matt Rhule’s has started Teddy Bridgewater, P.J. Walker, Sam Darnold, and Cam Newton since becoming head coach. The former NFL MVP was a desperate addition after both of head coach’s original choices failed to make an impact and the Carolina Panthers season was falling apart.

Rhule chose to let Bridgewater leave Carolina in favor of starting Darnold. That decision alone is enough to get many coaches fired. The Louisville product isn’t a great quarterback, but he is a game manager who is a big upgrade over the No. 3 overall selection in 2018.

The fact that Rhule has made such poor choices at the most important position on the field is a major red flag headed into the offseason.

Compounding the issue was Rhule’s head-scratching decision to bench Newton in favor of Darnold to end the campaign. But this was the way it was always going to play out considering how much the Panthers invested in the underperfoming signal-caller before the draft.

However, Darnold if anything had been equally as bad and doesn’t have the story or the fanbase in Carolina that Newton does. Choosing to start him showed stubbornness and an inability to read the room.

Fittingly the Panthers and Darnold’s season ended on an interception that perfectly encapsulated the campaign at the quarterback position. Just where the team and Rhule goes from here remains to be seen.