Keeping Sam Darnold clean could make or break the Carolina Panthers’ 2021 season

Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold is “dialed in,” according to Christian McCaffrey. Robby Anderson says he has a “different aura” compared to their time together with the Jets.

It’s never hard to find teammates saying nice things about their starting quarterback, especially at this time of the year. If you’ll recall, a lot of Carolina players were raving about Teddy Bridgewater’s charisma and work ethic last summer. Bridgewater may have been popular in the locker room, but he never came close to justifying the resources the Panthers sank into signing him last March. That’s why he’s out of the picture – if not off the books – and competing with Drew Lock for a starting job in Denver.

While they didn’t sign him to an obscene new contract, landing Darnold from New York required three draft picks. If he’s going to live up to the investment this organization has put into him, Darnold will need to turn all that potential and upside we’ve been hearing about into tangible results.

Some are convinced he’s a lost cause, but the story most analysts have adopted since the trade is that Darnold didn’t have a fair chance with the Jets as he didn’t have enough support. Specifically, he played for bad coaches, had no help at wide receiver plus poor pass protection from his offensive line.

In Carolina, he’ll have at least two-thirds of that puzzle. OC Joe Brady is a sharp playcaller (at least compared to Adam Gase) and the Panthers have far more firepower at their skill positions than the Jets ever did from 2018-2020.

However, one all-important element of the game that might not change for Darnold is the dynamic in the trenches.

If you consistently watched the Jets the last three years (condolences) you already know Darnold rarely had clean pockets to work with and he didn’t exactly thrive when forced to throw on the run. In fact, he’s struggled so much in those situations that Touchdown Wire recently named him the league’s worst passer outside the pocket.

Both the tape and the numbers back that take up. When his protection breaks down Darnold looks hurried and inaccurate-as-hell and he posted the NFL’s lowest passer rating (52.8) on those throws last year.

Darnold could improve a great deal with this change of scenery, but if he’s going to face consistent pressure then his ceiling as a quarterback is going to remain below-average at best.

The question is if the Panthers’ new-look offensive line can keep Darnold upright often enough to unlock his potential.

On paper, it’s far from a guarantee.

Taylor Moton might be the NFL’s best right tackle, if not the most underrated one. Carolina also has a pair of respectable projected starters at right guard and center with John Miller and Matt Paradis. The left side of the line is where things get really dicey.

Last season, the Panthers had a rotating cast at left tackle due to injuries. This year, the candidate most likely to start appears to be Cameron Erving, who is literally the lowest-graded offensive lineman in football over the last three seasons according to Pro Football Focus. Meanwhile, Pat Elflein is the front-runner to start at left guard and he hasn’t been much better.

These two signings were new general manager Scott Fitterer’s worst moves of the offseason aside from passing on Justin Fields in the draft.

If these two do wind up manning that left side, we can safely bet Darnold is in for a rough time this season. Even if he makes huge strides with his decision-making, Darnold won’t be able to lift this Panthers team much higher than Bridgewater unless some serious work is done up front.

Plugging that hole at left tackle wouldn’t solve all of their problems. It would be an excellent place to start, though.

Offensive line coach Pat Meyer has an unenviable task in trying to find a working combination with the pieces he has. That’s why the front office should seriously consider re-signing Russell Okung, 32-years old and injury-prone though he may be.

Whether it’s Okung or somebody else, the Panthers have to find a solution to this problem, or else all their other work may go to waste.

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