Things didn’t work out how they were planned when the New York Jets selected Sam Darnold with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft.
Now he is spiraling with the Carolina Panthers and his future is very much up in the air. Although a recent predicted trade could make his life even more difficult with some fresh and familiar competition.
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Wow Wouldn’t That Be Interesting
On the NFL Stock Exchange podcast, Connor Rogers and Trevor Sikkema presented realistic trade offers that could make sense this offseason.
One of the ones that were discussed was the Cleveland Browns sending Baker Mayfield to the Carolina Panthers in exchange for a fourth-round draft choice.
That would reunite the top two quarterbacks selected from the 2018 NFL draft class which would be pretty funny with Sam Darnold already with the Panthers.
Who could have possibly guessed that both passers who were expected to be stars in the NFL could end up being traded to the same location to compete for the same job? It is a very small world out there.
He Is the Guy, for Now
By the way, speaking of shocking, can anyone still believe that Joe Douglas got three draft picks for Darnold via trade last offseason?
What a wizard.
The former USC product was supposed to show why he was the No. 3 overall pick with what appeared to be better coaching and playmakers around him in Carolina. Sadly that didn’t come to fruition in his first campaign:
- 12 games played
- 22 turnovers (combined interceptions and fumbles)
That last point is the most frustrating part of his game and it has plagued him since his college days. On occasion, you will witness a spectacular play that only a handful of quarterbacks can execute in this league immediately followed by these bone-headed and crippling turnovers.
Sam Darnold interception on the first play of the game 😬
Welcome to Week 6!
Despite those issues, Darnold is “in the lead” to be the starter once again in 2022, per general manager Scott Fitterer.
Although that should come with a tag that says “for now” because there is still the 2022 NFL draft looming in the background. On top of that, the Panthers were one of the teams in on the Deshaun Watson sweepstakes which would’ve obviously ended any Darnold starting speculation.
However, they lost out in those discussions and are stuck with Darnold and his bloated $18.8 million salary for next season that is fully guaranteed.
“We want him to take it and run with it,” Fitterer said via ESPN. “But we’re gonna add a lot of competition to that room. The whole emphasis is to stabilize the quarterback position to play winning football.”
After watching Darnold flop with the Jets, the team hopes they got it right this time with Zach Wilson out of BYU. The good news is it appears Gang Green has learned from their past mistakes and has surrounded the young quarterback with more protection and playmakers than Darnold ever had.
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Predicted Trade Pits Ex-Jets QB Against No. 1 Overall Pick