The Carolina Panthers are in the market for a quarterback, still lingering from the Sam Darnold debacle that was the 2021 season. Carolina traded its 2022 second-round and 2022 fourth-round picks as part of the Darnold trade with the New York Jets, leaving the Panthers with just one pick in the first 136 selections.
That selection is the No. 6 pick, and the Panthers may be pressed to take a quarterback there if they don't trade down from the spot. General manager Scott Fitterer met with Darnold on Monday about Carolina potentially selecting a quarterback in this draft and adding to the quarterback room.
In other words, Darnold should prepare himself for competition for his starting job.
"In our conversation I said, 'Hey, we are going to add to this group through this weekend, there's a pretty good chance we could add to this group,'" Fitterer said, via ESPN. "It's open competition. It's his spot right now, but whoever can take the spot and run with it, we're going to do that."
The Panthers have every reason to seek a potential upgrade over Darnold, who has been one of the worst quarterbacks in the league since he was drafted in 2018. A fresh start in Carolina didn't help Darnold, who completed 59.9% of his passes for 2,527 yards with nine touchdowns to 13 interceptions for a 71.9 passer rating last season -- and the Panthers went 4-7 in his starts. He finished 31st in touchdown passes, 30th in completion percentage, 30th in yards per attempt (6.2), and 31st in passer rating amongst the qualified quarterbacks.
Baker Mayfield could also be an option for Carolina, but the Panthers don't appear interested in trading for him at this time. Carolina is still paying Darnold $18.9 million this season, yet wants to find stability at quarterback going forward.
In the meantime, Fitterer knows he has to help his current one with talent on offense.
"We need to help him out as well," Fitterer said. "I think we've done a good job...surrounding him with talent where he doesn't feel he has to make every play."
