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Your QB, Sam Darnold. Sam is trash

Quick watch, nothing too informative but nice to be subject of an offseason for once. Question for the huddle: Would Sam Darnold be an option for come back play of the year? He did miss 4 games... (probably not)

Apparently, an offer for Darnold came about a week before free agency. Apparently, there were multiple teams interested. “The Panthers were first in touch about Darnold in mid-February, after an offer of the eighth overall pick, a fifth-rounder and Teddy Bridgewater for Stafford fell short of what the Lions wound up getting from the Rams for their quarterback. And thereafter, because of strong relationships Douglas had with the Carolina brass, trust and communication between the teams kept the light for a Darnold trade on.” “The first thing you need to know about how the Jets arrived at the decision they did is that, in a normal year, they might’ve pulled the trigger a lot sooner than April 5. In fact, about a week before free agency, Douglas had a deal on the table that was good enough to move on. At that point, the first flash point for the Darnold market—the late January trade that sent Matthew Stafford from Detroit to L.A.—had generated interest from eight teams (Carolina was among the eight), and one had emerged with an offer that was at least in the ballpark of what the Jets were looking for. The problem was, at that point, the Jets just weren’t there yet on the crew of quarterbacks who’d be available to them at No. 2. Sure, they’d done a lot of work by then. But in a normal year, at that early March juncture, they’d have already seen the guys throw at the combine and maybe a private workout or all-star game, interviewed them in person in Indy and collected all of their medical information.And those, in 2021, were boxes still unchecked.” “It was a strong offer,” Douglas says. “We told them, Look, there’s still a lot of boxes left to check. And we just don’t feel comfortable, in case something happens with one of the top two guys, we don’t want to get caught in a bad situation, like one of two guys fails a physical and then we don’t have Sam. So we didn’t do anything.” https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/04/08/inside-story-of-why-jets-traded-darnold-new-qb-search

Even after they spent three draft picks to acquire quarterback Sam Darnold in a trade with the Jets, the Panthers haven't checked the position off of their offseason to-do list. Carolina is still open to picking a quarterback with the No. 8 pick in this year's draft, according to SI's Albert Breer. The Panthers' sense of urgency to find a long-term solution at that position increased when San Francisco traded up to the No. 3 pick. The team has other needs—specifically cornerback and offensive tackle—but would still consider taking the right quarterback if he was still on the board at No. 8. General manager Scott Fitterer has a history with stockpiling at quarterback. The 47-year-old first-year GM spent two decades working with the Seahawks, both as a scout and in the front office. During his time there, he saw Seattle GM John Schneider add three quarterbacks in the 2012 offseason, all while still employing veteran starter Matt Hasselback. That year, the Seahawks traded for Charlie Whitehurst and signed Tarvaris Jackson and Matt Flynn as free agents, with Flynn signing a three-year deal worth over $20 million that many assumed meant he would be the team's new starter. Instead, the job went to the rookie the Seahawks took in the third round: Russell Wilson. The Panthers still have Teddy Bridgewater under contract, and picked up Darnold's fifth-year option following the trade. Bridgewater started 15 games for Carolina last season, throwing for 3,733 yards with 15 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Darnold completed 59.6% of his passes in 12 starts for the Jets in 2021, with 2,208 yards, nine touchdowns and 11 interceptions. https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/04/12/carolina-panthers-sam-darnold-quarterback-nfl-draft

Ever since I've seen this pic of Darnold in a Panthers uniform I've had to double-take a few times haha. I mean, they do have a similar resemblance. Frankly, if someone said that Greg Olsen was in California and needed some quick cash and made a deposit to the sperm bank, I'd give that rumor some weight Just thought it was a funny observation and thought I'd share my 2 minutes of Photoshop time. Here's hoping Darnold will have a similar career boost from the shitty team prior to the Panthers trading for him.

Question. For all you people talking sh¡t about Darnold, or sh¡t about Rhule and Fitterer--or even if you aren't a Negative Nancy--how do you feel about the 2021 Darnold deal versus the 2020 Bridgewater transaction? And don't be a copout and say, "They both suck!" Answer the question! I can say unequivocally that I can live with this deal intellectually, notwithstanding the 2022 2nd), but I absolutely hated the money and structure of the Bridgewater deal. At least now, we don't have that much invested in Darnold, even after picking up his option. His salary should be a small issue next offseason, even if he bombs this year. Moreover, you really don't know what his ceiling really is because of being in such a horrible situation, from coaching to development to weapons. With Teddy--as some keep reiterating--we knew exactly what he was (well almost, but for the ball {no}security)! Now, we know we have a big, strong, young QB that can make all the throws (with definite ball security issues), but also one that has been "broken" to a certain extent, but a coaching staff that may legitimately be able to "fix" him by putting him into situations that play to his strengths, and not forcing him to do things that play into his weaknesses, and can ultimately turn those weaknesses into strengths. For all the pontificating on Bridgewater, I think that it's fair to say that he wasn't some newb at his first rodeo show. He was in an offense that he was very much knowledgeable about, and he had enough weapons--and was in situations--where he really should have succeeded...at least beyond the appearance of failure. So, from where I'm sitting, things aren't perfect (and they wouldn't have been even with a rookie QB), but at least we haven't done anything jaw dropping in the Darnold deal--just maybe a little eyebrow-raising with the second--haven't compromised the future by selling the farm, and have a QB with a much higher ceiling this season than we did the last. On an off note, I wonder how/if Fitterer tempered Rhule (& possibly Tepper) on the compensation.