How Much Better Does Baker Mayfield Make the Panthers?
Just a week ago, expectations for the Panthers were very low with many around the league pegging them to be a bottom five or so team.
Having a quarterback room that consists of Sam Darnold, PJ Walker, and Matt Corral doesn't necessarily scream "competitive", but adding Baker Mayfield to the fold changes everything.
No, the Panthers aren't a lock to make the playoffs with Mayfield under center but it does at the very least give them a chance to compete for one of those wild card spots. Last season, the Panthers lost a number of games solely based on the poor play from Darnold at quarterback. The moment they would fall behind two scores or needed a scoring drive late in the game to stay alive, it felt inevitable that they would be unable to complete the mission. In some instances, it would go from just needing a score to a blowout in the blink of an eye.
Although Mayfield has questions around his game, he has had success in the league as a starting quarterback. I mean, he did take the Cleveland Browns to the playoffs AND won a game for crying out loud. The guy is not a bum of a quarterback, he's just not a top-tier guy.
Having one of those "elite" quarterbacks sure makes it a lot easier to compete for a playoff spot and more but you don't necessarily need one of those guys. First of all, they're hard to find (the Panthers know all about that) and it's been done before. Jared Goff made the Super Bowl with the Rams in 2018, Nick Foles won a Super Bowl with the Eagles, and Joe Flacco won one with the Ravens.
If Mayfield can return to his 2020 form and be an Alex Smith/Ryan Tannehill/Jimmy Garoppolo type of quarterback, the Panthers can have long-term success. That is of course assuming Christian McCaffrey stays healthy and this young defense continues to get better as they grow older.
As far as 2022 is concerned, the Panthers were projected to win 5.52 games according to the Action Network prior to the Mayfield trade. Now, they're projected to win 6.62 games. In my opinion, I think it makes them at least 2-3 wins better. Before the trade, I had Carolina as a 6-7 win team. With Baker, I think 8-9 wins is attainable.
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