After another miserable year for the Carolina Panthers, particularly under center, they’re looking to pivot elsewhere at the quarterback position. And although that’d be an immediate threat to Sam Darnold’s job, he doesn’t seem too worried about it.
The 24-year-old hopped in the back of a bus for the latest episode of Bussin’ With The Boys with Will Compton and Taylor Lewan. When breached about the prospect of the Panthers drafting a quarterback in a few weeks’ time to potentially replace him, Darnold gave the ol’ “It is what it is.”
“It truly is ‘Whatever happens, happens,'” Darnold said. “At the end of the day, like, it’s out of my control. And I know that.”
While the team’s decision moving forward is out of his control, the events leading up to this point were very much in his hands. Head coach Matt Rhule and general manager Scott Fitterer devoted all they could to Darnold this past season—including trading second and fourth-round picks, green-lighting his $18.8 million fifth-year option and starting him in 11 of a possible 12 games.
What Carolina got back was the same quarterback we saw with the New York Jets from 2018 to 2020—the often frantic, fundamentally unsound and largely ineffective one. Darnold ended his 2021 campaign with 13 interceptions and the same amount of touchdown passes as he had fumbles (nine).
But, whatever happens between April 28 and April 30, Darnold said he knows he’s good enough for someone to want him, even if it’s not the Panthers.
“I have enough security in myself to where I can be like ‘I know I’m a good quarterback,”” he added. “I know I can be a good quarterback in this league. I’ve proved it. And I know there’s a team that if—you know, something happens—that would want me.”
So . . . any takers?
