The Carolina Panthers have not been known for fielding a strong team in recent years. Their search for a franchise quarterback led them to offer fresh starts to two former top picks who had fallen out of favor with their previous organizations.
Baker Mayfield was on the outs in Cleveland and requested a trade after the Browns acquired Deshaun Watson from the Texans. He eventually landed in Carolina. Sam Darnold had been replaced by Zach Wilson in New York and was traded to the Panthers in 2021, with Mayfield arriving the following year.
Neither quarterback found his footing in Charlotte, and both were gone by the end of the 2022 season. Two years later, however, Mayfield and Darnold are back as starting quarterbacks, each having earned solid contracts with their new teams.
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Here is more on Mayfield and Darnold's paths from struggling with the Panthers to becoming starting quarterbacks with the Buccaneers and Seahawks.
Baker Mayfield Panthers career
Mayfield was traded to the Panthers on July 6, 2022, for a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2024 draft. The starting job came down to him and Sam Darnold, with Mayfield ultimately named the Week 1 starter. In his debut, cameras caught him pacing the sideline and glaring at his former Cleveland teammates, a flash of the swagger he once displayed at Oklahoma. The Panthers, however, lost the game.
Mayfield suffered a high-ankle sprain in Week 5. When he returned in Week 8, it was as the backup to P.J. Walker. He saw action again in Week 9, entering in the second half of a blowout loss to the Bengals and trimming the margin from 35 points to 21 by the final whistle. Despite looking sharper than Walker, he remained the backup in Week 10.
On December 5, 2022, the Panthers granted Mayfield’s request for a release.
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Why did Panthers release Baker Mayfield?
The Panthers released Mayfield because he requested it. Carolina had fired Matt Rhule, and interim head coach Steve Wilks took over. Despite Mayfield looking better than Walker, Wilks decided to start Walker. Darnold was also coming back from a high-ankle injury to provide some quarterback depth.
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Sam Darnold Panthers career
Darnold was traded to the Panthers on April 5, 2021, in exchange for a 2021 sixth-round pick, a 2022 second-round pick, and a 2022 fourth-round pick. Carolina picked up his fifth-year option for the 2022 season. In his first year with the team, Darnold missed about six weeks with a fractured scapula. When he returned late in the season, he split time with a returning Cam Newton and finished with a 4-7 record as the starter.
In 2022, Darnold competed with Mayfield for the starting job. He lost out, then suffered a high-ankle sprain in the final preseason game. He returned in Week 12 and was named the starter, finishing the year with a 4-2 record.
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Why did Panthers release Sam Darnold?
Carolina didn't release Darnold. When the 2022 season ended, his contract ended, and the Panthers chose not to re-sign him. This led Darnold to sign with the San Francisco 49ers as the backup to Brock Purdy in 2023.
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Panthers QB depth chart 2022
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | Baker Mayfield |
| 2 | Sam Darnold |
| 3 | PJ Walker |
| 4 | Jacob Eason |