The Carolina Panthers named Sam Darnold their new starting quarterback on Tuesday.
After Baker Mayfield’s debacle last week against the Baltimore Ravens, where he could only muster Carolina’s offense to three total points in another Panthers’ loss, a change in quarterbacks appeared to be necessary.
Sam Darnold to start at quarterback on Sunday vs. Broncoshttps://t.co/x9V1PSyvAO
— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) November 22, 2022
This will be the first game Darnold has played in this season. He suffered a high ankle sprain during the preseason finale against the Buffalo Bills and returned about a month ago from the injury.
In my opinion, this appears to be one of Darnold’s final opportunities, if not his last, to prove whether or not he can play quarterback productively at the professional level. I can’t imagine him getting any more opportunities at being a team’s starting QB in this league unless he gets really, really lucky. (RELATED: NFL Star Sets All-Time Record For Kick Return TD’s. Should He Be Inducted Into The Hall Of Fame One Day?)
With that said, I believe in Sam Darnold. He has shown glimpses in the past of his talent as a quarterback. He had three consecutive games with Carolina a year ago where he threw the football for over 300 yards. There was even a game during his rookie campaign back in 2018 with the New York Jets where he passed the ball for more than 330 yards against the Miami Dolphins.
Based on how he’s played in the past, I’m optimistic that Darnold can play well in these final six games of the regular season and win over this starting QB role heading into next year.