Can Baker Mayfield save Matt Rhule’s job? NFL experts react to Panthers’ trade
The Carolina Panthers made their move for a quarterback, trading a 2024 conditional fifth-round draft pick to the Cleveland Browns for Baker Mayfield, the 2018 No. 1 overall pick.
Many NFL analysts panned the move, criticizing coach Matt Rhule’s process and the amount of assets given up for quarterbacks that haven’t worked.
Warren Sharp said the move was “100% about Matt Rhule trying to save Matt Rhule’s job” and that Mayfield “isn’t a long term answer … will win just enough to keep you from drafting a top QB.”
He then outlined the various steps and missteps Carolina made in its search for a quarterback.
NFL Network reporter Cameron Wolfe looked ahead to the Panthers’ season opener, where they’ll take on Mayfield’s old team — the Cleveland Browns. He imagined a world where the Panthers won and Mayfield’s subsequent celebration.
Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III said the Panthers and Mayfield “are a match made in Heaven.”
He noted that Mayfield needs to play the best football of his career to eliminate doubt about his abilities while Carolina needs him to do so “to save their jobs.”
Rhule’s coaching staff previously had doubts about Mayfield. Offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo ranked the quarterback No. 6 when he evaluated the 2018 draft, putting Mayfield behind Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Darnold, Josh Rosen and Mason Rudolph.
Ted Nguyen, an NFL staff writer at The Athletic, was similarly skeptical of the surrounding cast in Carolina.
This story was originally published July 6, 2022 at 3:20 PM.
