First Things First

The NFC South is one of the most competitive divisions in this year's divisional gauntlet. The Carolina Panthers look to be a team who can compete for the top spot in the league this year and it comes with many new faces in the fold. Luckily, their week one matchup comes against another team that not only has a young quarterback but an almost brand new roster.

 Newly acquired QB Sam Darnold is young, talented, and still unproven. His greatest asset after his arm is his youth. Despite being in his fourth year, Darnold is still seen as a very young Quarterback trying his best to make a name for himself. Everyone knows that Darnold is talented, but we have not yet seen him take the next step to living up to the hype. 

His 2020 season in New York did not look good. In 12 starts, Darnold threw 9 touchdowns and threw 11 interceptions to go with it. His completion percentage and quarterback ratings were less than stellar. Although it is understood that the New York Jets have not been a good team for some time now, being considered a franchise quarterback is the expectation for Darnold and his performance against his former team may answer some questions for fans. 

The New York Jets rookie Quarterback Zach Wilson is also young so there is not much expectation for him in his first game, however, critics will be waiting to see if he can perform better than Sam Darnold in his rookie year. 

X-Factors 

Dynamic playmaker and bell-cow back Christian McCaffrey is finally back in action as he missed nearly the entire 2020 season with a shoulder, ankle, and quad injury. McCaffrey makes the entire Panthers organization go when he is healthy. Prior to the unlucky 2020 season, McCaffrey had back-to-back seasons with 1,000 rushing yards and 100 receptions. This type of production is at the top of the league for running backs and the only back that comes close to this type of production in multiple facets is Saints ball carrier, Alvin Kamara. 

The ability to give different looks on offense will be the Panthers biggest advantage on offense, but the real strength of the Panthers is on the defensive side of the ball. The Panthers defense is one of the youngest and most talented groups in the league. First-round Cornerback Jaycee Horn and veteran cornerback Donte Jackson are stellar corners that command respect. Despite Horn being in his first year, he is expected to be one of the most dominant corners in the league and after a standout camp, he can surely shut down an entire side of the field. 

Safety Jeremy Chinn and OLB Shaq Thompson are a superior duo in the back end. The two defenders are fast, physical and get sideline to sideline. Here you can see how elite their ball tracking ability is in the run and how much ground they cover. Zach Wilson and the offense will have difficulty trying to move the ball without spreading the field and without Jamison Crowder due to injury, the Jets will have to find another answer offensively. Potentially with receiver Corey Davis and Rookie Elijah Moore.

Prediction

With the Panthers defense having the edge over a young Jets offense and Christian McCaffrey returning to action, the Jets will have their hands full this week. The Panthers are the more experienced team with a much more complete roster. In this non-divisional contest, I predict that the Panthers will come out on top in a decisive contest. The Jets will surely make some exciting plays with talented rookie QB Zach Wilson, but the lack of experience will be the downfall. 

Carolina Panthers Win, 28-14

Writer

-By: LeMarkus Bailey

Ever since drafting him third overall out of USC in 2018, the New York Jets and QB Sam Darnold have been a mess that never got cleaned up for three seasons. Whether it was injuries, bad coaching, or just lack of talent around him, Darnold never really got his chance to shine in New York because of the situations around him. Because of this and the likelihood that the Jets take a QB with the second overall pick, New York decided to trade Darnold to the Carolina Panthers for a series of picks. Let us look at the details of this trade and who comes out of this trade on the better end.

Trade Details

Regarding the details of this trade, they are quite simple. The New York Jets will receive three picks from Carolina: a sixth-rounder in this year’s draft, while also getting a second and fourth-round pick in the 2022 draft. As for Carolina, they will just be receiving Darnold with no conditions or incentives reported. It was also reported that the Panthers will discuss picking up Darnold’s fifth-year option as he enters his fourth season.

Carolina Panthers

Ever since QB Cam Newton lost his MVP ability because of injury, the Panthers have struggled to replace that talent at quarterback. Newton stuck it out for a few years, but never regained his form. Since Newton’s departure from the starting job and eventually, to New England, the Panthers have employed Kyle Allen and Teddy Bridgewater, who is still on the team, at the position. In other words, they do not have their franchise QB yet, making the Darnold trade a good one on their end. Darnold has shown the raw ability to play quarterback but has not translated it to the field for various reasons. Now, with a fresh start in Carolina with a quality coaching staff, quality receivers, and an all-pro running back, Darnold will be able to do more with less instead of running for his life with a bad play-caller. Carolina did not have to give up a first-round pick either, helping them draft even more help for Darnold and build a team around him. Despite this, Darnold still needs to prove himself, but he is in the perfect position to do so in Carolina.

New York Jets

On the Jets end of this trade, the move was inevitable. Darnold and the Jets organization had a broken relationship with no trust and no clear direction. Trading Darnold gives both sides a clear direction while making it almost a lock that New York takes a quarterback. New York was able to get some draft capital, the best being a second-round pick in 2022 but were not able to cash in and get a first-rounder. Regardless of this, New York needed to make this move and wipe the slate clean. Now, it is a matter of the Jets drafting the correct quarterback and getting pieces to build around him. Gang Green will have more than enough draft stock to do that and will look to stay active in an already busy offseason.

Who Won the Deal?

Like the Carson Wentz trade, the winner of this deal truly cannot be decided until we see results from not only Darnold but the Jets quarterback as well. If Darnold plays well and gets the Panthers to relevance, this trade is easily a win for Carolina no matter what the Jets do. As for the Jets, they need to draft the right quarterback and start winning games fast with him. If not, they will be in the same position they are in right now a few years down the road. While you cannot truly pick a winner, Carolina has the better chance of being successful over the next couple of seasons, making them the “winner” of this trade.

Writer

-By: Richie Dordas

Rising star defensive tackle Quinnen Williams described early in the month the new culture that he wished to see in the Jets moving forward. Williams longed for a new defensive culture for the Jets, one reminiscent of the New York Sack Exchange of the 1980s. The Jets have hired just the man to lead that change.

The New York Jets announced on January 14th that former San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh would become their new head coach. Just less than two weeks after moving on from former head coach Adam Gase, General Manager Joe Douglas quickly identified Saleh as his guy moving forward.

Robert Saleh is the change the Jets need after a disaster of a tenure with Adam Gase that saw New York go 9-23 in his two years at the helm. Douglas made it clear what he wanted in his new head coach, a person with “high integrity and outstanding leadership and communication skills,” as he said at the start of their search. Saleh fits this bill extremely well. Saleh is a true leader of men that commands the respect of his players. He has impressed in his time as a coach and player developer in San Francisco, especially over the past two seasons. 

Over the past two years, Robert Saleh has built San Francisco into one of the top defensive units in the league. During the team’s Super Bowl run in 2019, the 49ers were 2nd in total yards allowed, allowing a league-best 4.7 yards per play. They ranked top ten in both points allowed and in takeaways.

This past year the 49ers were one of the most injured squads in the entire league. Stars Nick Bosa and Richard Sherman missed almost the entire year due to injuries. Other contributors on defense such as: Jaquiski Tartt, Dee Ford, Solomon Thomas, K’Waun Williams, as well as new signing Ziggy Ansah all missed lengthy periods of time during the season.

Despite the entire defense being injured and the offense not being as effective as the year before due to even more injuries, Saleh still rallied what he had into a good defense. The 49ers still were in the top 5 for total yards given up. They were about league average in points given up as well. With a ton of adversity, Robert Saleh made the most out of the situation.

Robert Saleh has a ton of good experience prior to his time with the 49ers. Starting in 2011 Saleh would learn under Pete Caroll and Gus Bradley, the architects of the Legion of Boom, as the Seahawks defensive quality control coach. He eventually would reunite with Bradley in 2014 in Jacksonville as their linebackers coach, helping develop future stars, Telvin Smith and Myles Jack.

Robert Saleh has learned under some of the best defensive minds of the 2010s, and in recent years has started to make a name for himself as a top defensive coordinator. Given his pedigree, experience, and results, the New York Jets look to have grabbed the top head coaching candidate of the offseason and a potential top head coach for the future. Saleh will have a bevy of young talent at his disposal in addition to top picks in this year’s NFL Draft, and can help change the Jets from the perennial “butt fumble” of the league, to a respected top contender.

All stats provided by Pro Football Reference

Writer

-By: Jacob Keppen