Panthers GM takes shots at Baker Mayfield following Bucs QB’s failure last season

The Carolina Panthers drafted Bryce Young with the No.1 overall pick in the NFL Draft. That decision was made based on what fellow quarterbacks Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold were offering.

Despite the pair playing well in patches, the Panthers knew, deep down, that neither was worthy of a long-term deal that would have seen their salary skyrocket.

Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer said as much as he detailed the main reason why the organization drafted Young and decided to move on from Mayfield and Darnold.

Fitterer said via Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated:

“I think, once we traded Baker [Mayfield] and Sam [Darnold] came back [from injury],” Fitterer said Sunday, “Sam actually played well this past year. But you have two swings at it.

"You have high hopes for both Sam and Baker when they got here, and at a certain point, I remember talking to Mr. Tepper and [assistant GM] Dan [Morgan], and we’re like, 'We gotta just draft and build our own.'

"Even if Baker hit or Sam hit, it was going to be a lot of money to renew these guys, and how do you build a team properly, unless it’s like a top-five quarterback?"

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Panthers right to move on from Baker Mayfield as QB1 in favor of Bryce Young

Carolina Panthers v Baltimore Ravens

Baker Mayfield swapped Cleveland for Carolina last season in a move that desperately needed to happen. While it was seen as a good move, many knew it wasn't going to be the long-term solution. Thus, Mayfield's performances reiterated that.

Baker Mayfield played six games for the Panthers last season and went 1-5 in those games. He threw for only six touchdowns and six interceptions and had a completion percentage of just 57.8.

It was this kind of form that led the Panthers front office to trade up and get the No.1 overall pick and take Bryce Young. Now that they are headed in a new direction, an air of optimism surrounds the organization regarding what Young can bring.

Mayfield was a stop gap, and as Fitterer alluded to, if you are going to be paying a quarterback top money, then he will need to be worthy of it, and clearly, they thought neither Mayfield nor Darnold were.