The Carolina Panthers have a pretty solid roster with a giant question mark at the quarterback position. Former New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold is currently the man under center, and he hasn’t lived up to his billing as the 2018 third-overall pick. However, Carolina is hoping that a change of scenery and improved supporting cast will be enough to revitalize the USC product. PFF, however, doesn’t see things the same way, as they currently have Sam Darnold ranked as the 28th-best starting quarterback in the league.
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PFF: Sam Darnold A Bottom-Five Starting Quarterback
Nobody denies that Sam Darnold had a rough year in 2020. With two years of experience under his belt and a clean bill of health, the former first-round pick was supposed to show the world just how good he could be. Instead, Darnold faltered, ranking at or near the ball of just about every quarterback statistic. However, his poor supporting cast definitely played a role in this disappointing season.
That said, Pro Football Focus points out that Darnold wasn’t that great on things he could control. He has the worst passing grade last year out of 36 qualifying quarterbacks, and he has the fourth-highest uncatchable pass rate in the league since 2019. These statistics shouldn’t be too heavily influenced by supporting cast and tend to be more stable than the highlight-worthy plays.
For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus still believes that Darnold has a chance to improve. Saying that Carolina offers “a more stable organization and leadership, as well as offensive weapons”, PFF acknowledges that there is a chance Darnold develops into a better quarterback. However, based on what he’s shown to this point in his career, this selection feel justified.
Teddy Bridgewater Unranked, Justin Fields at 25
There is a silver lining here, as a bottom-five quarterback is still an upgrade on what the Panthers had last year. Denver Broncos starting quarterback Drew Lock came in dead last, while Teddy Bridgewater didn’t even earn a spot on the list. This implies that PFF thinks Darnold is an improvement on Bridgewater, which admittedly isn’t saying much. Bridgewater had a rough season last year, recording just 15 touchdowns to 11 interceptions in 15 starts.
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Even with Darnold under contract, the Panthers were in prime position to take one of the NFL Draft’s best quarterbacks in Justin Fields. Originally projected as the second-best quarterback at the start of the offseason, Fields fell all the way to the 12th-overall pick. Carolina could have pulled the trigger, but ultimately decided to go with cornerback Jaycee Horn.
As good as Horn is, the Panthers could forever regret this decision if Fields turns into a good quarterback and Darnold flames out. Pro Football Focus believes this to be possible, as Fields comes in three spots ahead of Darnold. While this might not sound like much, we need to point out that Trevor Lawrence came in at QB21. These rankings are very conservative with rookie projections, yet Fields is still ahead of Darnold.
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