The Carolina Panthers announced quarterback Baker Mayfield to play as starting QB in the upcoming regular season opener game against his former team, the Cleveland Browns. Panthers head coach Matt Rhule confirmed the news earlier this week on Monday.
The decision was one of the most anticipated in the preseason as Mayfield, who was acquired recently in July, had to compete against Sam Darnold for the starter position. Rhule shared that the competition was centered around three factors—and Mayfield aced the three while making notable improvements in “a short amount of time”.
“When we started this process, we were looking at three things,” Rhule said.
“Number one, mastery of the offense, number two, situational football excellence, and number three, moving the ball and getting guys involved. That’s been our focus all along. Baker has made a lot of improvement, a lot of growth in all three areas in a short amount of time.”
Playing for Panthers
Mayfield’s debut in Carolina was long-awaited by NFL enthusiasts after the team agreed to trade for him, officially marking an end to this four seasons stint with the Browns.
Reportedly, the 27-year-old had slight health problems this month, especially his shoulder, which was injured last season and was the main reason behind his absence in Week 18 this year, when Cleveland had ruled him out for surgery. However, Mayfield assured Monday this week he is “ready to go”.
“I feel extremely healthy, so I’m ready to go,” he said. “I’m loving football again and a fresh start is great for everyone every once in a while. I am just going to take this opportunity and make the most of it and not take it for granted.”
When asked about the upcoming regular season opener against his former team, the Austin native acknowledged there is “a lot of attachment” tied to his former squad. However, he added it “doesn’t mean anything” now.
“Obviously there is a lot of attachment there and I’m not going to sit here and be a robot and say that it doesn’t mean anything. It will,” Mayfield said of the season opener against the Browns. “But right now all that matters is me continuing to improve until the regular season starts.”
Mayfield’s practice sessions surprised everyone on the team, and Rhule kept praising the player for how much he had improved.
“It’s not easy what he did — between the verbiage and the checks and all of the options that we give him. We think he’s a really smart guy. As he stays in the offense he will grow and grow and grow and get better and better and better,” Rhule added.
Darnold, who was bested by Mayfield, has said that the competition was “tough”. Despite losing the race, the former New York Jets remains supportive of his newly hired teammate.
“It’s tough, I’m not going to lie. But it is what it is,” Darnold said. “I’m going to do everything I can to support Baker and get him ready to play a game.”
Mayfield helped the Panthers win their second preseason game 23-21 over the Washington Commanders on August 13. The QB made the second-highest passing yards behind Phillip Walker. Mayfield threw for 45 yards and completed four out of seven pass attempts. Meanwhile, Walker made 10 out of 19 attempts for 136 yards.