4 best and worst-case scenarios for Panthers QB Sam Darnold in 2022

Cam Newton comes back and Sam Darnold becomes an afterthought

Although it does appear unlikely, the speculation regarding Cam Newton possibly coming back to the Carolina Panthers continues to grow. The former NFL MVP injected life back into the organization with a bombshell return before their Week 10 win at the Arizona Cardinals, which was much-needed and brought a level of excitement not before seen during the Matt Rhule era.

Things didn’t go according to plan after that. But unlike Sam Darnold, the Auburn product wasn’t afforded a full offseason to learn the playbook and develop chemistry with his teammates.

Whether Newton has enough left in the take is debatable. One could make a strong case for him being a far better alternative than Darnold heading into the 2022 season, but whether Rhule and others within the organization feel the same is the only opinion that matters.

If Newton is brought back, Darnold will officially be done in Carolina. It might also allow the Panthers to select an elite left tackle at No. 6 overall and hope they are in a position to select someone like Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, KJ Jefferson, or Grayson McCall in 2023.

Darnold is likely going to go down as one of the biggest draft busts in recent memory along with most other top-end signal-callers selected in 2018. The Panthers expected much more, and they could be dealing with the consequences for some time yet.