The Panthers roster has undergone some seismic changes this offseason. No position looks more different than the most important one on the field.
After several months of uncertainty and anxious speculation, the team released former MVP QB Cam Newton. The move saved the team $19 million in salary cap space but also hurt their depth at this spot. To replace him, Carolina signed Teddy Bridgewater to a three-year, $63 million deal. The team also traded Kyle Allen and signed P.J. Walker.
Where does that leave the Panthers’ quarterback situation compared to other teams? According to Connor Orr at Sports Illustrated, he has them ranked No. 22 at this position going into the draft.
“There isn’t a single playcaller I am more excited about in 2020 than Joe Brady in Carolina. The former LSU assistant’s baseline knowledge of the Saints’ system should help Bridgewater get off the ground running, though it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Panthers add at the position in two weeks.”
Orr’s analysis is mostly on the spot. Brady’s creative playcalling and familiarity with Bridgewater should help soothe a lot of the burn that the offense will feel without Newton. However, there’s plenty of room to improve, so it would not come as a shock at all if they pick a quarterback in the draft. That said, we think No. 22 is just a tiny bit too low for this group. There are at least three teams we think they should be ranked ahead of.
First, Orr has the Bears at No. 21, which is entirely too generous. Mitchell Trubisky is arguably the worst starting quarterback in the league and Nick Foles doesn’t qualify as much of an upgrade, either. Foles has his moments and we predict he’ll eventually win their QB1 job. That will only give them an average starter, though. Chicago should probably be no higher than No. 24 right now.
The other two teams who are worse off than the Panthers in our humble opinion are the Rams (No. 15) and the 49ers (No. 13).
Despite his status as a former No. 1 pick, Jared Goff isn’t much better than Trubisky and his extremely burdensome contract guarantees they won’t be getting back to the Super Bowl anytime soon. Bridgewater is a far superior option and P.J. Walker has more potential than John Wolford, as well.
As for San Francisco, Jimmy Garoppolo is a strange case and one of the most difficult quarterbacks to evaluate in today’s NFL. While he regularly makes impressive high-level plays, Garoppolo misses far too many of the easy throws that Bridgewater makes comfortably. He also is made to look a whole lot better than he actually is thanks to Kyle Shanahan’s brilliance as a playcaller. Pair him practically any other offensive coordinator and Garoppolo’s reputation would likely take a significant tumble. That’s not to say Bridgewater is a better quarterback, but we’d much rather have his contract than Garoppolo’s.
If the Panthers pick up one of this year’s top QB prospects, they could rise in rankings like these a lot.
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