Matt Rhule stands behind Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold
Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule is not giving up hope on his young quarterback Sam Darnold. After starting the season 3-0, the Panthers have been struggling to find traction as of late. Many have looked at the recent struggles of the offense as the reason Carolina has looked so porous.
Rhule defends his quarterback
The Panthers are currently on a three-game losing streak, most recently falling to the Minnesota Vikings. In the loss of the Vikings, Darnold did not look good statistically. He went 17 of 41 for 207 yards, one touchdown and an interception. This week, Rhule was asked about his confidence level with his 4th-year quarterback.
“I’m bought in on Sam,” Rhule said, via Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News. “My biggest thing is making sure that me and [quarterbacks coach] Sean Ryan and [offensive coordinator] Joe Brady do a better job of putting Sam in the best position. He’s my focus and I expect him to play his best football moving forward. I’m not looking anywhere else.”
It’s not all on Darnold
In their 34-28 loss to the Minnesota Vikings this past weekend, the Panthers left points off the board. Both of their top two receivers, Robbie Anderson and DJ Moore, dropped passes in the game. Rhule spoke on the lack of help for his young quarterback in the game.
“What Sam needed today was a little bit of help from his friends at times. he needed some plays to be made,” he said. “We dropped a lot of balls, … I think when you’re a quarterback who’s a little out of sorts, a little out of whack, you need some guys to make plays for you.”
Unfortunately for the Carolina Panthers, the hits keep on coming. Against the Vikings, they lost two more playmakers in receivers Terrence Marshall Jr. and Brandon Zylstra. Marshall is currently in concussion protocol after taking a monstrous hit from Viking safety Xavier Woods in the second quarter. However, that hit was illegal and drew an unnecessary roughness penalty in the process.
It’s uncertain if Marshall will be able to clear concussion protocol before the Panthers’ next game in New York. Zylstra on the other hand, the Panthers know they will be without. He also left in the first half against the Vikings with a left hamstring injury. The Panthers do not want the injury to linger so they have placed him on IR to recover.
While it would be easy to point the finger at his quarterback, Rhule sees the big picture. Without key players like McCaffery, it’s no easy task to find consistency. Plus receiver drops do not help Darnold or the Panthers at all. Rhule understands there are 11 people on the field on offense at a time. And it takes all 11 working together to be successful.