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Last year, the Panthers made the surprising decision to trade for Sam Darnold and go into the season with Darnold as their unquestioned starting quarterback. It did not go well, but the team’s owner isn’t ready to throw in the towel on Darnold.
Panthers owner David Tepper said today that he still believes in Darnold.
“I do think we have a very good quarterback in Sam Darnold,” Tepper said.
Tepper defended the decision to trade a second-round pick, a fourth-round pick and a sixth-round pick to the Jets for Darnold, who is owed a guaranteed salary of $18.585 million this season.
“At the time that we made the trade, Sam’s compensation was moderate, and what the coaching staff and what the scouting staff thought at the time was he was a very talented young man,” Tepper said. “He still does have incredible skills.”
Darnold hasn’t shown much of those incredible skills, and it’s still unclear whether the Panthers will go into the 2022 season with Darnold as their starter. But Tepper sounds ready to stick with Darnold for another year.
