An ankle injury for QB P.J. Walker pressed Panthers QB Baker Mayfield back into the starting lineup for Sunday's game in Baltimore. And Mayfield delivered more of what got Carolina's offense started so slowly this season. He threw for just 196 yards, 0 TDs and 2 INTs on 21-of-33 passing. WR Terrace Marshall was the only Panther to tally more than 26 receiving yards. He caught 3 balls or 76 on a team-high 6 targets. D.J. Moore managed just 3 catches for 24 yards on 5 targets. Bet on Mayfield bowing back out of the lineup as soon as someone else is ready.
The Panthers announced Monday morning that QB Baker Mayfield will start Sunday's game at Baltimore. That's because P.J. Walker suffered a high-ankle sprain in Thursday's win over the Falcons, interim HC Steve Wilks revealed. Mayfield most recently tallied 155 yards and 2 TDs in 2nd-half mop-up duty of the lopsided Week 9 loss at Cincinnati. Before that, of course, he played terrible through the 1st 5 games. The team also reportedly has "some interest in seeing Sam Darnold in action at some point," a ringing endorsement by way of ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Here's hoping you don't need to use a Carolina QB in your fantasy football lineup anytime soon.
The Panthers will start QB P.J. Walker again Thursday night against the Falcons. Walker got pulled for Baker Mayfield at halftime of Sunday's lopsided to the Bengals, and Carolina activated QB Sam Darnold from IR on Monday morning. But the short week leading up to their next game likely contributed to the decision not to make a starter switch. Walker, of course, threw for 317 yards in the Week 8 win at Atlanta. Keep in mind, though, that he only completed 52.8% of his passes in that game and generated 62 of his yards on the single Hail Mary-style throw to WR D.J. Moore at the end of regulation. We'd still try not to use Walker in fantasy football lineups. We'll see about the team's QB plans beyond Week 10.
The Panthers activated QB Sam Darnold (ankle) from IR. He's been practicing for a couple of weeks but is now evidently ready for game action. We'll see who Carolina goes with at QB vs. the Falcons this weekend. QB P.J. Walker was benched at halftime of the loss to the Bengals. QB Baker Mayfield played his best football of the season over the 2nd half, completing 14 of 20 passes for 155 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INTs.
Panthers interim HC Steve Wilks said Monday that QB P.J. Walker will start this weekend's game vs. the Falcons, even if QBs Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold are ready to return from their ankle injuries. Walker was efficient in Sunday's shocking win over the Bucs, completing 16 of 22 passes (73%) for 177 yards (8.1 YPA), 2 TDs and 0 INTs. Most importantly, he got WR D.J. Moore going. The pair connected on 7 of 10 targets for 69 yards and 1 score. Walker remains a bottom-barrel fantasy option, but Moore is back in the WR3 mix for Week 8.
Panthers HC Steve Wilks said Wednesday that QB P.J. Walker will start Sunday's game against the Buccaneers. Walker threw for just 60 yards before leading the Week 6 loss with a neck issue. It doesn't sound like the team is concerned about that injury. The Panthers also designated QB Sam Darnold to return from IR Wednesday, though we'll see if he's ready for a spot on the active roster this week. Jacob Eason served as Walker's backup in Week 6.
Panthers QB Sam Darnold (ankle) has been designated to return from IR and will return to practice this week. With QBs Baker Mayfield and P.J. Walker both banged up and playing horribly, we'll likely get Darnold back in our lives at some point this season. Of course, you can leave him on the waiver wire in fantasy leagues.
Panthers QB Sam Darnold (ankle) is eligible to come off the IR this week but is expected to still be sidelined for "a while," a source tells ESPN's Adam Schefter. This is worth reporting because QB Baker Mayfield has been so bad through 4 games that we're all wondering whether Darnold might actually be an upgrade. Unfortunately, it looks like it'll be Mayfield for at least a few more games.
Panthers QB Sam Darnold suffered a nasty looking left ankle injury in Friday night's preseason game vs. the Bills. He was quickly ruled out for the game. We'll pass along an update on Darnold when we get one, but this had the look of a long-term injury. Darnold, of course, had already lost the starting job to QB Baker Mayfield.
Update: It's a high-ankle sprain, per multiple reports.
The Panthers officially named QB Baker Mayfield their starter. This was expected since Carolina swung a trade for Mayfield in early July. He started the preseason opener over QB Sam Darnold, going 4-of-7 for 45 yards on 1 series. Mayfield is just a lower-end QB2 for fantasy squads, but we expect him to be an upgrade over Darnold for RB Christian McCaffrey, WR D.J. Moore and the rest of the Panthers offense.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler tweeted Friday that Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold “are still in a QB battle” for the starting job. Mayfield is believed to be the heavy favorite, but HC Matt Rhule hasn’t announced who’ll get the Week 1 nod vs. Cleveland.
The Panthers have announced that QB Baker Mayfield will start Saturday's preseason opener. This doesn't necessarily mean he's THE starter, but it sure seems like a signal that Mayfield holds at least a slight lead over incumbent Sam Darnold. And it comes less than a week after Ian Rapoport reported that Mayfield has the "inside track" to the gig. Mayfield is certainly our bet in this competition, and he's still going late enough to be a value in best-ball and superflex drafts.
Panthers OC Ben McAdoo said Tuesday that rookie QB Matt Corral is "slowly and quietly improving," according to Darin Gantt of the team website. "He has a unique skill set," the coach added. "He has some juice to him, personality wise." The trade for QB Baker Mayfield likely killed any shot Corral might have had at starting early in his rookie year. And this sounds like a coach offering measured optimism. Corral still makes for an interesting dynasty stash, with neither Mayfield nor Sam Darnold signed beyond this season.
QB Baker Mayfield has the "inside track" for the Panthers' starting job, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Mayfield and QB Sam Darnold have been splitting reps in camp, and that's expected to continue in the preseason, per Rapoport. "Based on the understanding [Mayfield] has of this offense, based on the kind of plays he can make, the kind of command he's already getting inside this locker room, it certainly does seem like it's Baker Mayfield's job to win," Rapoport says. We've projected Mayfield as Carolina's starter since the trade was made back in early July. Mayfield is just a low-end QB2 but should be an upgrade for RB Christian McCaffrey, WR D.J. Moore and the rest of the Panthers' skill-position guys.
Joseph Person of The Athletic reports that the Panthers continue to alternate QB Baker Mayfield with QB Sam Darnold in 1st-team workouts at training camp. HC Matt Rhule says he'll let the competition play out rather than anointing anyone. Person writes, "My expectation is that it will be Mayfield -- and nothing from the first seven practices has changed my mind." He adds that Mayfield has looked more comfortable in the 2nd week of camp than he did the 1st, though he also says Darnold has "looked sharp." We'll continue assuming that Mayfield wins out but will watch for confirmation.
Panthers GM Scott Fitterer called the team’s QB situation “an open competition” on Tuesday. As such, Fitterer anticipates the reps being divvied up “fairly evenly” at the start of training camp. While competition might be a point of emphasis, Baker Mayfield enters camp as the clear favorite to start Week 1 over Sam Darnold. Current QB projections have the former Brown slated for 15 games.
The Browns are trading QB Baker Mayfield to the Panthers for a conditional 5th-round pick in 2024, NFL Network reports. The 2 teams "split the financials to make it happen," according to Ian Rapoport, so Carolina is presumably picking up about half of Mayfield's nearly $19 million 2022 cap hit. Mayfield is coming off a disappointing, injury-riddled 2021 season but played well the previous year, finishing 10th among 32 qualifiers in Pro Football Focus' passing grades. In fact, Mayfield earned higher PFF passing grades in each of his first 3 NFL seasons than QB Sam Darnold has managed in any of his 4 NFL seasons. So Mayfield is a tangible upgrade for D.J. Moore, Robby Anderson, Terrace Marshall and Christian McCaffrey. Mayfield himself looks like just a middling QB2, although those weapons give him some weekly upside. Check out the updated projections for the Panthers offense.
Update: Per NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, Mayfield agreed to shave about $3.5 million off his 2022 salary. The Browns will pay him $10.5 million this year; the Panthers around $5 million.
Speaking at minicamp, Panthers HC Matt Rhule indicated that QB Matt Corral isn’t close to earning the starting job. “He has a good spirit, a good demeanor about him when he walks in the building. And I think he understands there’s no timetable for him,” Rhule said Tuesday. “I think he has that sense of urgency when he works. I respect the way he works. But he has a lot to learn. A lot to learn.” None of this should be shocking — it’s June, and Corral’s a Round 3 rookie. Still, with Sam Darnold running with the starters and Carolina reportedly very interested in Baker Mayfield, Corral’s path to year 1 snaps looks rough. He’s a dynasty-only stash for now.
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