Wait, is Sam Darnold good?
That’s the question a lot of NFL fans and media members are asking themselves following Thursday Night Football’s game between the Carolina Panthers and Houston Texans. Darnold completed 23 of 34 passes for 304 yards and rushed for two touchdowns as the Panthers moved to 3-0 following a 24-9 victory. Sure, the Texans aren’t world-beaters, but Darnold’s latest effort is matched by his previous ones this season, which includes a 305-yard, two-touchdown performance in his last game as well.
It’s quite the stunning change from Darnold’s time with the New York Jets. In his three seasons there, he rarely showed this kind of command and ability to lead a team to victory consistently. Case in point, he had just four 300-yard games in his entire Jets tenure and he already has two of them in three games for the Panthers.
It’s enough to make a lot of people wonder whether or not he was actually the problem all along.
It wasn’t all good things for Darnold, who still needs to work on his blocking capabilities…
But hey, if that’s the worst thing that the Panthers have to worry about with Darnold right now, we’re guessing they’re just fine with that. Darnold came into the season as a quarterback with something to prove and so far, he’s doing just that.