The Panthers are all in on Sam Darnold.
Carolina announced Friday that it has picked up the fifth-year option for the former Jets quarterback, locking him up through the 2022 season. Darnold is now fully guaranteed to receive $23.6 million over the next two years.
To further confirm their faith in Darnold, the Panthers traded quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to the Broncos on the eve of the draft in exchange for a sixth-round pick. And in the first round, the organization opted to select cornerback Jaycee Horn with the eighth-overall pick, instead of another signal-caller.
After regressing in three seasons with the Jets, who drafted him third-overall in 2018, Darnold was traded to Carolina earlier this month. The Panthers sent the Jets a 2021 sixth-round pick, as well as second- and fourth-round picks from 2022. Things particularly began to spiral for Darnold under former Jets head coach Adam Gase.
Darnold also suffered a series of injuries during his tenure in New York, including a bout with mono that enlarged his spleen and derailed his 2019 season. He also had a toenail removed later that year.
In 2020, Darnold finished with 2,208 passing yards, nine touchdowns and 11 interceptions as the Jets finished 2-14.