Mr. Scot

Without a credible threat on the other side? That's a tough sell. Gets even tougher when you remember that teams have figured out they can run on him.

Neither do the Chiefs anymore...

Former Eagles team President Joe Banner believes the Panthers should have gone ahead and signed Mayfield to a one-year extension. I'd guess the Darnold experience probably prevented that from happening.

They're probably going to need to be good because this year's pass rush isn't likely as good as last year's. Throw in that teams realized they could run on us last year. If they still can, that doesn't help either.

Reasonable take, and one consistent with what we've been hearing. Where it gets sticky is that the Panthers are going to want a potential rate partner to be willing to take on some of Darnold's salary. Even to a team in need, that's a hard sell.

Isn't he the only quarterback on the roster for next year?

Also kinda need Ben McAdoo to be right about Corral but wrong about Mayfield

Reid's probably the best WCO coach in the game right now. Gotta be between him and Payton, I'd think. He's arguably one of the best since Bill Walsh but his postseason record doesn't really hold up that well. (Holmgren and Shanahan were better on that front)

Yeah... wouldn't put money on either of those things happening.

The scenario that keeps running through my mind for the coming season is one where the offense finally looks good...but the defense breaks down. I'm not a big Phil Snow fan so this outcome isn't exactly hard to imagine.

WCO still employs a deep ball. Maybe not as frequently as a Coryell but it's there. Personally, I used to not be a big fan of WCOs but I've warmed to them over the years. When you saw how effective Sean Payton's offense was, it became pretty hard to hate. In the end, I honestly don't care that much either way as long as we win.

Mayfield's had to learn from four different OCs in his career and still managed to look at least decent doing it. To be honest though, I feel like the whole "QB competition" thing is just coachspeak anyway.

Again, all very easy statements to make as a fan who doesn't have any consequences. I don't have a high opinion of Matt Rhule and my expectations for him are very low, but not so low that I expect him to slit his own throat or look at roster decisions with an "eh, whatever" attitude.

About 18 million dollars... Ask yourself this: What happens if Mayfield is lost for the season? Sure, as a fan you may not give a sh-t, but the guys whose livelihood actually depends on team performance? They kinda do Part of running a team is that you do have to plan for possibilities and eventualities. If all that you look at is "right now", then you'd probably do well at the Marty Hurney School of Cap Management.

Statements like this tend to have disappointing answers

Well, somebody did. Probably wasn't Ben McAdoo...

I don't like Mayfield. Not sure I'd say I was against this trade though so much as I just wasn't for it. I'd rather Corral sit first.

Does he really have that much of one, though?

I know people want to make the worst possible comparisons with Darnold, but let's be real. PJ isn't an NFL quarterback. in a situation where some other team loses a starter, there does exist the possibility that another team would give Darnold a try. No NFL team not coached by Matt Rhule is going to trade so much as a ham sandwich for PJ Walker. And I know people like to make these edgy, big ball, "cap be damned, I'd cut him anyway" posts, but that kind of thing puts you on an even lower tier of football knowledge than David Tepper.

The college game isn't as much about adjustments as the pro game is.

Side Note: Just because I found this amusing...

Panthers social media will probably post pics when he arrives.

Remember our last quarterback competition? (Will Grier vs PJ Walker)

One kind of odd dynamic going into this season... Offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo goes into the year with a rookie quarterback he's a big fan of and two veterans of whom he's not been all that fond. Will be intriguing to see how that plays out.