Where the Panthers Placed on ESPN’s Way-Too-Early 2021 NFL Power Rankings

Carolina is not being thought of very highly and that is not much of a surprise.

Earlier this week, ESPN released its way-too-early power rankings for 2021 and there was not much love given to the Panthers, to say the least, as they had Carolina tabbed as No. 23. 

The biggest reason why they are so low in the power rankings? You guessed it. The uncertainty at the quarterback position. 

At this point, everyone knows that the Panthers are not confident in Teddy Bridgewater being the face of the franchise and leading this team back to relevancy. Although he didn't have much help in terms of a consistent offensive line, he did have three receivers that accumulated 1,000 scrimmage yards, yet only threw for 15 touchdowns. Bridgewater really struggled in the red zone and late in games. The Panthers were 0-8 in one-score games and that stat alone will damage your reputation as a starting quarterback.

There's no doubt that if the Panthers find a way to pull off a trade to land Deshaun Watson from the Texans, they will move up in these power rankings. Should Carolina draft a quarterback in the first round, you probably won't see much of a change. With that said, it doesn't all revolve around the quarterback position even though it plays a big part. Can the Panthers re-sign Taylor Moton? Who do they sign in free agency? Who do they let walk? There's about to be a lot of moving pieces this offseason so while things don't look great at the moment for 2021, now is not the time to panic. New GM Scott Fitterer is going to be aggressive and make a ton of changes to this roster. 

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