USAT: Panthers Wire audio clip

USAT: Panthers Wire

Jan 14, 2022

After running through quite a bit of resources at the quarterback position over the past two years, the Carolina Panthers have squeezed themselves between a rock and a hard place for 2022—and it might be the same rock and hard place they were in for 2021. During his interview on Thursday for WFNZ’s The Clubhouse with Kyle Bailey, general manager Scott Fitterer addressed the conundrum under center. But, whoever’s they have there to start the new campaign, the team knows they have to improve the offensive line in getting there. “We definitely need to stabilize the position,” Fitterer said about the quarterback spot. “A lot of that’s gonna start up front, we have to protect the quarterback. The one thing about Sam [Darnold], is Sam’s got a good skill set. So we have to help him. He can’t have guys in his face all the time. So when we go into the year, whether it’s Cam [Newton], whether we go out and trade for a quarterback, whether we draft one—we’re gonna do something at the position at some point here.” Fitterer’s unprompted mention of Newton, whose return for next season seems unlikely at this point, is rather intriguing. Despite the support he laid out for Darnold, is Cam still an option for the Panthers moving forward? Well, quite possibly. “We’re evaluating that position, but I did have a chance to talk with Cam,” Fitterer went on when asked of Newton’s future. “And we just told him straightforward, ‘Hey, if we can find a role that fits for us, a role that fits for you and it works out’—we’d love to have Cam back.” Although Fitterer might be hedging his bets amongst the fan base with the “if” portion of that statement, he has been considerably and consistently truthful of his thought process since being hired. So maybe, just maybe, there’s some smoke there. Newton, who was also ultimately smoked by that weak front and a directionless offense, completed 54.8 percent of his passes for 684 yards, four touchdowns and five interceptions over eight games (or six if you discount the pair of one-snap outings to end the season). He added in 230 yards and five more scores on the ground as well. Regardless, however, of what head coach Matt Rhule may prefer or the 0-5 record for Carolina in his starts, Newton and his mere presence is worth having around—at least in Fitterer’s mind. “I’ve said this several times to different people,” he continued. “I love the guy. He came into the building every day and had so much energy. He’s got so much charisma and presence to him. He would come in, hard day after a loss, you’d see him down in the cafeteria and he just lifted everybody. So you always have room on a roster for someone like Cam—the special person that he is.” RelatedPanthers keep hometown QB around in PFF's 2022 mock draft RelatedPanthers viewed Pro Bowl OT Rashawn Slater as guard during draft List What we learned from Panthers' 2021 exit interviews Email Sign up Like this article? Sign up for the Panthers Wire email newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning An error has occured Please re-enter your email address. Thanks for signing up! You'll now receive the top Panthers Wire stories each day directly in your inbox.

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