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The Carolina Panthers have had a Super Bowl hangover for over six years now. Since the fall-off and subsequent release of Cam Newton, the franchsie has had inconsistent play from the quarterback position. The addition of Christian McCaffrey was exciting, but now, the superstar running back struggles to stay healthy.
NFL Analyst John Middlekauff spoke on Carolina's quarterback woes and McCaffrey’s’ injury issues on the 3 and Out podcast.
"If you told me Sam Darnold resurrects his career. I'd say you have a chance. But like Matt Rhule, it feels like he wants out. Your owner's kind of crazy. If Sam Darnold is not good and you don't trade for one of these quarterbacks, you're going to be screwed."
He went on:
"McCaffrey is always injured. So I would just set your expectation as a fan very low. And anything that happens good, is gravy."
Much like Derrick Henry last season, McCaffrey’s injuries came as no surprise considering how heavily Carolina relied on him. With Sam Darnold signed to the team, there was hope the former New York Jets quarterback could develop into a franchise quarterback after spending years struggling with the New York Jets.
However, Darnold’s season was also cut short due to injury and the Panthers were forced to bring Newton back in. Newton too was hurt and the team continued their streak of bad luck. Interestingly. with quarterbacks like Baker Mayfield and Jimmy Garoppolo up for grabs, Carolina are yet to move away from Darnold.
The Panthers need a healthy Christian McCaffrey and Sam Darnold to compete in the NFC South.
What’s worse is that they now find themselves in the same division as Tom Brady for at least another year. Perhaps this is all part of their plan. Next year’s quarterback class coming into the draft is going to be loaded, and the Panthers could be counting on finding their next quarterback there.
McCaffrey has missed 23 of 33 games over the last two seasons, and now the Pro Bowl running back has turned to Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk for advice on recovery and how to avoid any more setbacks in his NFL career.
The Panthers will once again lean on Darnold in the hopes there’s more to him than what was on display with the Jets. All in all, Carolina have a long way to go before they can compete in the NFC South, let alone the NFC as a whole.
