The Carolina Panthers ignored calls to bench veteran left tackle Rasheed Walker after his woeful performance against the Green Bay Packers on Thursday Night Football.
And they paid a heavy price for their blind faith.
The Panthers are now 3-5 after losing to the Denver Broncos at Bank of America Stadium. Despite things not entirely clicking once again, a superb rally from quarterback Bryce Young gave them a fighting chance to salvage something down the stretch.
Rasheed Walker is costing the Carolina Panthers games at the worst time
Not for the first time this season, Walker ruined those hopes.
With the game on the line, Broncos edge rusher Nik Bonitto beat Walker badly and forced a sack-fumble on Young. That was the end, and it only brings head coach Dave Canales' decision to stick with the free-agent signing under more scrutiny.
This cannot go on for much longer.
Granted, the Panthers are missing their starting tackle tandem of Taylor Moton and Ikem Ekwonu. Rookie first-rounder Monroe Freeling isn't faring much better on the other side, but Walker is legitimately costing Carolina games.
That is unacceptable, and it has to change.
There are ways around it if Canales wants to explore them.
Brady Christensen is nearing a return. He can play anywhere on the line, and he is a solid performer. While he might have been out of action for a year now, desperate times call for desperate measures.
Carolina Panthers must now be ruthless by benching Rasheed Walker
Placing Christensen at right tackle and moving Freeling to the blindside, where he was drafted to play, should be considered. And it's not like things could get much worse than Walker.
This experiment with Walker has failed miserably.
The Green Bay Packers let him take his chances elsewhere in free agency for a reason. His free-agent market and projected contract value plummeting was another clue, and even though the Panthers thought they were getting a steal, it's turned out to be anything but.
No one knows when Ekwonu will return. He's reportedly making progress, but there is still no timeline. Moton is out for the year, if not longer, so the Panthers will have to make the best of a bad situation.
Throwing Christensen straight into the fire is risky, of course. But on his best day, he is far more dependable than Walker.
And dependability is precisely what Young needs right now.
The time for half-measures is over.
The Panthers' fortunes this season are teetering on the brink, even though fans expected a deep postseason run. They still lead the NFC South with just three wins, but that's no excuse to avoid tough personnel calls.
Walker should be on the chopping block. And if this is the tipping point behind his benching, the Penn State product should have no complaints.
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