An improved Sam Darnold? Why the Panthers quarterback says he can be ‘one of the best’
There was a different energy coming from Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold at his first media availability of the offseason Tuesday.
Darnold, usually straight-faced, walked into the media room with a smile and even cracked a joke.
As he enters Year 5 of his career, in what will likely be a make-or-break season for the former No. 3 overall pick in 2018, Darnold knows the gravity of his situation.
There isn’t much room for him to fail in 2022. He has one year left on his contract, and the Panthers drafted his future replacement, Matt Corral, in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft.
During Darnold’s exit interview, general manager Scott Fitterer told him that they’d look at other opportunities, alluding to the possibility that the Panthers could pursue another quarterback. And that still remains a possibility, even with Corral on the roster.
But Darnold says he’s not thinking about that.
“Everyone, including myself, knows the situation,” Darnold said. “With that being said, it doesn’t change my mindset. I have a great attitude about myself going into every day.”
Last season, Darnold lost his confidence. He admitted his feet were “loose” or choppy in the pocket. That affected his throws. He played in 12 games in 2021 and finished with nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He completed just under 60% of his passes.
Darnold said he has watched film and has tried to understand why his feet get choppy, and it comes down to understanding what the offense and defense are doing on each play.
“As long as I know what we’re doing and what the defense is doing, I’m confident that I can be one of the best quarterbacks in the league,” Darnold said.
Darnold took the field on the second day of OTAs on Tuesday, and the first open to the media. He threw some nice passes, including one backdoor fade to undrafted rookie Derek Wright. He was accurate on most of his passes, though he didn’t have a pass rush and nearly had one pass intercepted on 7-on-7 drills.
The option remains for the Panthers to seek a veteran quarterback. But if the season were to start today, Darnold would be the starter. Corral still has a long way to go in terms of understanding the offense this offseason, and Carolina would rather him sit and learn before putting him out on the field before he’s ready.
Darnold’s coaches and teammates say they see a change in his demeanor.
“I think Sam is having a really good offseason so far,” Panthers coach Matt Rhule said. “I think he’s really, really developing technically. So I’m pleased with where he’s at so far.
“He’s completely bought into Ben’s way of doing things. I think you see a calmness now.”
Ben McAdoo is Darnold’s fourth offensive coordinator in his five seasons. The challenge will not only be learning a new offense, but also keeping his confidence up when things may not go his way.
The Panthers had one of the worst offensive lines in the league last year. Wide receivers dropped passes. His best weapon, running back Christian McCaffrey, missed 10 games because of injury.
But a lot of Darnold’s passes were also off-target. In fact, he had an 18.5% bad throw percentage, according to Pro Football Reference. Only 74.5% of his passes were considered on-target.
“Sam has got all the tools, he’s got the arm. I think he can make every throw. He can get out of the pocket and run,” Rhule said. “I think when you look at an area he struggled, he’s got pressure and his feet have gotten a little antsy. So we want him to play with great rhythm and balance. ... Keeping his weight on his back foot, not letting him start to get out of whack.”
The Panthers need Darnold to be better if they want to compete for a playoff spot and avoid another losing season. He was 4-7 as a starter in 2021. The Panthers were good when he played well, and failed to generate much offense when he wasn’t.
“He’s been dialed in,” McCaffrey said of Darnold. “I think it’s been great for him to be around Coach McAdoo, who has had experience with some great quarterbacks. But he’s been awesome. Right now, he’s running the ship and everybody is behind him.”
For Darnold, he said his plan is to continue to focus on learning the offense. He doesn’t want to think about next year, or what may happen in the future. He’s trying to keep it simple.
“It’s really not up to me, to be honest,” Darnold said, when asked whether he viewed this as a critical year for his career. “I can think about it like that. ... But for me, it’s really just going out there and playing every play like it’s my last. And it’s understanding, ‘OK, what’s my job on this play.’
“If you start to add into the mix, ‘Oh, this is a contract year, and what are they going to do,’ — playing quarterback is hard enough.”
This story was originally published May 24, 2022 at 4:31 PM with the headline "An improved Sam Darnold? Why the Panthers quarterback says he can be ‘one of the best’."
