The Wide World of Dirt

The Deal

Panthers Receive: QB Sam Darnold

Jets Receive: 2021 6th-round pick, 2022 2nd-round pick, 2022 4th-round pick

I woke up this morning and didn’t see anything about this deal on my phone, but my lady was scrolling through what was trending when I saw Darnold.

I immediately picked my phone up and searched for the deal myself, and sure enough, the 4th-year QB was shipped to Carolina for a bundle of picks.

Panthers: B+

I know many people have sold their Sam Darnold stock, but I’ve been a stubborn stockholder. I liked the guy coming out of USC, and I believed he had immense talent that could be unlocked.

His rookie season showed promise, but with minimal weapons around him, he wasn’t able to capitalize much. In an attempt to aid his development, the Jets brought over Adam Gase after his firing by the division rival Dolphins.

In short, that was a massive mistake, and after two ill-fated seasons, New York kicked Gase to the curb to bring in 49ers DC Robert Saleh to take over the HC gig.

Saleh was questioned before the ink was dry on the paper if his team would keep Darnold, but Saleh and the front office kept quiet. Outside of Darnold’s name being thrown up in hypothetical conversations for bigger names, the USC product looked to be staying put.

Until today, when the Carolina Panthers took a flier on the 23-year-old signal caller, giving up three picks over the next two seasons to see what potential is left in Darnold.

This was a medium-risk, high-reward move for Carolina. If you just look solely at their win-loss record, they don’t look like they’re primed for a big season in 2021.

But, we look deeper here.

The 5-11 Panthers lost eight (8) games by 8 points or less last season, meaning they were one or two plays going differently from being .500 or above.

In addition, their franchise player, Christian McCaffrey, only played three games last season before a few injuries stacked up and knocked him out for the season.

Though Mike Davis appears to be a solid back, McCaffrey is a special player at the position, and the offense clearly suffered in his absence. Having both backs available will only help the offense, no matter who is under center.

Teddy Bridgewater played admirably in his first shot since his gruesome knee injury in Minnesota, and personally, I think he played well enough to warrant another season to continue to prove himself.

It’s not about what I think though; it’s about what Matt Rhule thinks. His personnel decisions have been successful thus far, and I trust he’ll make the right decision here.

Darnold could benefit from taking some time behind a veteran QB in Bridgewater to rehabilitate his mindset and mechanics before seizing the reigns of another franchise.

People forget: Sam Darnold is actually younger than Joe Burrow, last year’s No. 1 overall pick (He’s younger than me too, but we don’t need to talk about that.) Most guys at his age get a longer leash, and I think he’s shown enough talent to warrant that longer leash.

Hopefully, he gets a new lease on his career in Carolina, and Rhule revives the potential that Darnold showed the football world in Pasadena.

Jets: A-

Robert Saleh wasted little time in showing where his head was at. With talks of the Jets taking a QB at No. 2 in the draft, Saleh kept mum about his plans for Darnold.

Rather than trading Darnold as part of a larger package to bring in an established QB, the Jets kept their picks in-hand and dealt Darnold for some additional ammo going into draft season.

If they didn’t believe Darnold would pan out for them, I applaud them for letting him get almost a full offseason in with a new team and avoiding a QB controversy heading into training camp.

Whether the draft picks become solid players or not doesn’t matter. The Jets made sure that their team and organization know who the guy is, so moving Darnold was the right move for them.

They also receive a second-round pick in 2022, which is great. I wasn’t sure Darnold would attract the number of picks that he did, but good for them.

This is a rare trade where both sides won in some way. The Panthers get a 23-year-old QB at a fraction of the cost, and the Jets get a bundle of solid picks that could add talent and depth to a team that has struggled to find either.