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Panthers hopes ride on Sam Darnold’s potential, talent

By Russell S. Baxter

SPARTANBURG, SOUTH CAROLINA - AUGUST 08: Sam Darnold #14 of the Carolina Panthers looks on during their training camp on August 08, 2021 in Spartanburg, South Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
SPARTANBURG, SOUTH CAROLINA - AUGUST 08: Sam Darnold #14 of the Carolina Panthers looks on during their training camp on August 08, 2021 in Spartanburg, South Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images) /
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It’s been a tough three-year stretch for the club after reaching the playoffs in 2017. Did the Carolina Panthers make significant strides this offseason?

Best-case scenario

It’s Matt Rhule’s second season as the team’s head coach and the club finished 5-11 for the second consecutive year. This year, the offense will be led by former Jets’ quarterback Sam Darnold. But it’s the other side of the football that must continue to improve.

Carolina’s defensive unit did make some strides in 2020. But there’s more work to be done if the team is to work its way up the standings in the NFC South. Look for this unit to do better than 29 sacks and to force more than 22 turnovers as a lot of their young talent starts to gel.

Worst-case scenario

Sam Darnold fails to take advantage of the offensive talent around him and continues to struggle with taking care of the football. That was the concern when he was with the USC Trojans and it was an issue during his brief three-year stay with the New York Jets.

In 38 contests with the Green and White, the third overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft totaled more turnovers (46) than touchdown passes (45). That included 39 interceptions and 20 fumbles – seven of which he lost. A year ago, Matt Rhule’s club finished with 22 takeaways but gave up the football 21 times – all but two of their miscues attributed to their quarterbacks.

X-factor

He was the 13th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals. But linebacker Hasson Reddick was a big disappointment during his first three seasons and when the team had a decision to make on picking up his fifth-year option, they passed.

In 2020, he wound up having a career year in the desert. With Chandler Jones missing the majority of the season, Reddick picked up the slack and totaled an impressive 12.5 sacks. He inked a one-year, $6 million deal with the Panthers (via Spotrac) this offseason. Carolina managed just 29 QB traps this past year but the former Temple standout and talented Brian Burns could make for an explosive duo.

Biggest game – Week 14 vs. Atlanta

The team’s lone divisional victory in 2020 came at Atlanta a year ago. In the team’s 23-16 victory over the Falcons in Week 4, then-Panthers’ quarterback Teddy Bridgewater threw for 313 yards and two scores. Carolina has dropped their last four games vs. their NFC South rivals and own a dismal 8-22 record vs. the division since 2016.

Matt Rhule’s team has an off week before this second clash of the season with the Falcons. After a trip to Buffalo, the Panthers close the year with two games in three weeks vs. the Buccaneers. And in the middle (Week 17) they visit New Orleans.

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Bold prediction

In 2019, a healthy Christian McCaffrey set a single-season NFL record for a running back with 116 receptions, which also happens to be the highest total for the Panthers in their 26 seasons. A year ago, Carolina wide receiver Robby Anderson had more than one quarterback and hauled in 95 passes for 1,096 yards and three scores.

Now the former New York Jets’ big-play artist is reunited with quarterback Sam Darnold. The Panthers should have a healthy McCaffrey and electrifying D.J. Moore comes off an impressive year. But don’t be shocked if Anderson sets a new franchise record for receptions in a season.