Are Baker Mayfield & Jimmy Garoppolo Still Options for the Panthers?
Scott Fitterer was extremely close to trading for Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield on day two of the 2022 NFL Draft. While he was on the phone with Browns GM Andrew Berry, head coach Matt Rhule was on another line talking to Bill Belichick of the Patriots to try and move back up into the third round.
Fitterer and Berry failed to agree on how much of Mayfield's salary the Browns would pay for a deal to be made. Meanwhile, Rhule was able to work things out with New England to move up which led to the Panthers selecting Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral with the 94th overall pick.
Despite taking Corral, there seems to be a consensus among the Panthers front office that it's going to take some time before he can be handed over the keys to the offense. Coming from an RPO-centric offense, he's got a lot to learn in terms of coverages, five and seven step drops, and so on, meaning he's probably not going to be pushing Sam Darnold for the starting job anytime soon.
Heading into draft weekend, Fitterer made it known to Darnold that a quarterback would be added one way or another to infuse competition for the starting spot. Given that Corral is going to have to develop, this could mean the Panthers aren't totally out of the quarterback market.
"No, I would never put an absolute on anything," Fitterer said when asked if the team is completely done addressing the quarterback position. "We came into this weekend with the intention of adding a quarterback and that’s what we did. I think we are really happy with the group that we have and we are going to go with this group."
With Carolina passing on Mayfield via trade, the market for the Browns to deal him has become very small. It may come to a point where the Browns have no other option but to release him. If that does happen, you can expect the Panthers to once again show interest. However, according to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer, Mayfield isn't the only name to keep an eye out for.
“The Panthers will still kick around the idea of adding a vet like Jimmy Garoppolo, Baker Mayfield or Nick Foles to the mix. But they’re no longer in a desperate spot to do something.
“Which is really the key to all of this. They made a sound football call at No. 6. They have flexibility at quarterback. And that leaves them better positioned than they were Thursday morning.”
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