The Carolina Panthers find themselves in a challenging situation at the game’s most important position heading into the new year. Starter Teddy Bridgewater did not live up to expectations in 2020 and coach Matt Rhule would not commit to naming him the starter next season, despite Bridgewater’s assertion that this his still “his team.”
The backup quarterback situation doesn’t look any better. P.J. Walker showed some potential in the team’s Week 11 win over the Lions when Bridgewater was injured, but he also threw a couple of interceptions and bombed in Week 17 when he came in to finish out against the Saints.
Will Grier didn’t even get on the field this past season, which says about everything you need to know about his future with this franchise.
Adding more depth and talent at quarterback has to be the team’s top priority this offseason and it seems they know that much. Today’s news doesn’t inspire much confidence in how that search is going to go, though.
According to Ian Rapoport at NFL.com, the Panthers will host free agent quarterback Dwayne Haskins for a visit on Monday.
Haskins was just released by Ron Rivera’s Washington Football Team after he crashed and burned against Carolina with starter Alex Smith out. His putrid performance against the Panthers was only part of the reason. In the days leading up to that game, Haskins was disciplined by the organization for breaking the league’s COVID-19 protocols and stripped of his captainship.
Why would the Panthers be interested in bringing in a QB who has struggled on the field and been problematic off of it? It may be as simple as who you know being more important than what you know or what you can do.
According to the Athletic, Carolina coach Matt Rhule recruited Haskins while he was at Temple.
Haskins is still young (he’s 23 years old) and put some good things on tape while he was at Ohio State. That said, what we’ve seen in the pros is a far below-average quarterback who’s ceiling is likely going to be that of a backup. If the idea is for Haskins to be understudy for Bridgewater or whoever else winds up starting then signing him is not a huge risk – at least on the surface.
Young men are going to make mistakes and Haskins deserves at least a second chance at this level. We aren’t so much concerned with his off-field behavior as with his quarterbacking. However, if Rhule’s Temple recruiting is all that’s driving this visit then it does not bode well for how this team is going to be rebuilt.
This season, the Panthers made a habit of rostering players who previously worked with Rhule at the college level. Some of them worked out fine, others like Tahir Whitehead failed spectacularly.
The Houston Texans’ current drama with Deshaun Watson is an ongoing example of how much nepotism can ruin an organization.
In the absence of a general manager, Rhule is the one steering the ship right now. Carolina fans should hope that he doesn’t take this college connection thing too far and that whoever they hire has enough pull to resist those impulses.
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