Matt Rhule has changed his tone on Sam Darnold as the Panthers’ starting quarterback

Ellis L. Williams, The Charlotte Observer

Panthers coach Matt Rhule talked to the media for nearly 30 minutes on Monday and said a lot without committing to anything.

Following the Panthers’ 24-6 loss to the New England Patriots, where quarterback Sam Darnold threw three interceptions and completed worse than 50% of his passes, Rhule left himself several outs by not naming a starting quarterback. Instead, he brought the health of Darnold’s right shoulder back into question while also criticizing his performance against New England.

“Sam was sore after the game in his shoulder,” Rhule said. “He’s getting an MRI, and had one this morning. So we’ll wait to see exactly where he is, health-wise, moving forward.”

If only it were that simple. Rhule added he did not notice any of Darnold’s throws lacking velocity. He also ruled out Darnold reinjuring his shoulder at any point, which means the quarterback is likely just dealing with general soreness. Later, the Observer confirmed a report that Darnold’s injury is considered day-to-day.

Two weeks ago when Rhule benched Darnold against the Giants, he unequivocally supported him as his starting quarterback the following Monday. There was no question then Darnold would start the next week at Atlanta.

This Monday, Rhule’s tone changed.

“That wasn’t good enough from the quarterback position,” Rhule said. “We had guys open with some opportunities that we weren’t able to connect on. Too many batted balls that can’t happen at this level. And then obviously, three giveaways. I think when you look at our season, when we protect the football, we’ve had a chance to win.”

Rhule’s frustrations ring throughout that quote. He knows his quarterback is reverting to his old ways, falling into habits he and general manager Scott Fitterer vowed to help correct. Darnold is a turnover-prone quarterback. It may be settling in for Rhule that Darnold’s 36 turnovers in college at USC, 46 giveaways with the Jets and 11 interceptions in Carolina is who he is.

Perhaps Rhule already laid groundwork to protect Darnold from further embarrassment. Resting (rather than benching) Darnold moves attention away from his performance and allows backup P.J. Walker to start this coming week at Arizona behind a beat-up offensive line. Carolina lost center Matt Paradis for the season with a torn ACL against New England; left tackle Cam Erving is having an MRI on his calf. His availability is in doubt.

The questions surrounding Darnold’s long-term status in Carolina don’t matter until after the season. The Panthers are 4-5, undefeated in the NFC South and are a game behind the final wild-card spot which currently belongs to Atlanta.

But things become complicated if Carolina declares Darnold healthy. Rhule indicated Darnold’s grip on the starting spot is fading when he said this week of practice was important for him to see. Keep in mind Darnold started on Sunday with limited reps all last week.

“I’d have to see him on Wednesday and see. What does his health look like?” Rhule said. “I’ve seen Sam play well. I go back to the first three games I thought he played well. It’s kind of been this journey with him helping him to take the next step. I thought he took it last week and then took a step back this week.”

One step forward followed by three turnovers takes the Panthers backward. This isn’t the Darnold of September. Carolina’s passing offense remains broken. Rhule used Darnold’s health to delay a decision, and come Wednesday, he’ll have to make a decision, unless he wants a training camp-style quarterback competition on his hands.

“For me right now I just have to figure out where (Darnold) is,” Rhule said. “Is he okay to play this week? Is he cleared to play and then if he is, what exactly does that look like before I do anything else.”

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