Panthers wide receiver doesn’t want Carolina to trade for Baker Mayfield
Count Panthers wide receiver in the camp Robby Anderson that doesn’t seem to want Baker Mayfield as his quarterback.
The Carolina Panthers’ interest in Mayfield came back into the public eye Monday when The Charlotte Observer reported he and Jimmy Garoppolo could soon become more appealing trade targets for them. That discussion was pushed forward more when the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport told the Pat McAfee show Friday that he thought the Panthers were the most likely landing spot for Mayfield.
Anderson, who is entering his third season with the Panthers, does not appear to be a fan of that idea. He commented on an Instagram post from the account Panthers.Way about the report writing “Nooooo.” His reply received more than 6,000 likes.
Mayfield is still on the Browns’ roster but is looking for a new home after Cleveland traded with the Houston Texans for quarterback Deshaun Watson. Mayfield was the No. 1 overall NFL draft pick in 2018 and led the Browns to the playoffs in 2020 for the first time since 2002 when he passed for 26 touchdowns and 8 interceptions — the only season of his career he’s thrown fewer than 13 picks. His passing numbers regressed this past season when he had 3,010 yards and 17 touchdowns through the air to 13 interceptions in 14 games played.
Mayfield’s numbers, however, were still better than that of Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold (2,527 yards, 9 touchdowns, 13 interceptions in 12 games), who was the third overall pick of the same draft.
As for Anderson, his year-over-year receiving numbers took a hit last season when paired with Panthers quarterbacks Darnold, PJ Walker and Cam Newton, catching for a career-low 519 yards. In 2020, his first in Carolina, he had his first 1,000-yard season.
The Panthers picked up Darnold’s fifth-year option last year when they traded for him and he’s expected to remain on the roster but they are still shopping for a new starter, including through the draft later this month.
If Anderson had his choice of who will throw to him this fall, it likely wouldn’t be Mayfield.
This story was originally published April 16, 2022 at 10:16 AM.
