The Carolina Panthers signed Cam Newton to a one-year, $10 million deal on Thursday. This closes one of the more tragic quarterback carousel circles the league has seen in recent years.

To recap:

 

  • Carolina Panthers release franchise QB Cam Newton following the 2019 season.
  • Carolina Panthers sign Teddy Bridgewater as new quarterback for three-year, $63 million contract.
  • Cam Newton signs a deal with the New England Patriots.

 

Then, after Bridgewater’s conservative game play disappoints and Newton appears to be over the hill in New England…

 

  • Panthers trade Bridgewater to the Denver Broncos for a 6th round pick.
  • Patriots cut Cam Newton to focus on developing rookie Mac Jones.
  • Panthers trade a 6th (2021), a 2nd, and a 4th (both in 2022) for New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold.

 

The tragedies:

First of all, Teddy Bridgewater is proving to be way more of a downfield passer with Denver than he was with Carolina. The Panthers trade away a bunch of draft capital only to bring in Darnold, who has been historically bad (see below). With Darnold rostered, Panthers pass on draft quarterbacks Justin Fields and Mac Jones (also known as the guy brought in to replace Newton).

Finally, the Panthers bring back Newton and pay him starter’s money ($10 million!!!) after Darnold injures his shoulder.

In summary: The Carolina Panthers paid Teddy Bridgewater a bunch of money to take over for Cam Newton, only to trade him and a bunch of draft capital away to bring in a downgrade in Sam Darnold. Then, after Darnold gets hurt, they pay a bunch of money to bring back Newton, who was only available because the Pats preferred 2021 draft pick Mac Jones a quarterback, a draft pick the Panthers passed on.

While hindsight is 20/20, that is certainly not a saga that any franchise wants. On the bright side, the Panthers MUST see Newton as an upgrade from Darnold…

 

 

Regardless of how they got there, the Panthers are actually a very exciting team. They have one of the best running backs in the league back from injury in Christian McCaffrey, they have pass catchers that have proven to be game changers in the past in DJ Moore and Robby Anderson, and their defence has been one of the more surprising units in the league.

If Cam can find a fraction of his 2015 MVP form, the Panthers could be a seriously dangerous team. That’s a big ask, though.