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So far, the Carolina Panthers have gotten high marks for their work this offseason.
In particular, their two big free-agent signings—edge rusher Jaelan Phillips and Pro Bowl linebacker Devin Lloyd—have earned near-universal praise from NFL media. Plus, their 2026 draft class has also earned strong grades almost across the board.
There's no such thing as a perfect offseason, though—and the Panthers have made a couple of questionable decisions. Perhaps the strangest one came when they decided to make a change at the backup quarterback position—trading Andy Dalton to the Philadelphia Eagles and replacing him with Kenny Pickett.
At his best moments in college, Pickett looked something like a smaller, quicker version of Aaron Rodgers or Andrew Luck. But exactly none of that has carried over to the NFL level.
While he has a winning record as a starter (16-11), that's almost entirely due to his playing for good teams. Pickett has completed 62.4 percent of his passes, has thrown as many interceptions as a touchdowns and his career passer rating is just 78.2.
According to Bill Barnwell at ESPN, signing Pickett is the worst move the Panthers have made this year. Barnwell writes:
If signing a backup quarterback to a one-year, $4 million deal turns out to be the worst move the Panthers made this year, then they can probably live with that—especially if it means that Phillips lives up to his massive $120 million pact.
However, if the Pickett signing goes bad, it'll go really bad. Pickett would be fine to start for a game or two in the event of a minor sprained ankle or a sore hamstring to starter Bryce Young. But it may take one major injury for all of the good work that general manager Dan Morgan did this offseason to come crashing down.
Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers' Kenny Pickett deal earns a wag of the finger from ESPN
Continue reading...
In particular, their two big free-agent signings—edge rusher Jaelan Phillips and Pro Bowl linebacker Devin Lloyd—have earned near-universal praise from NFL media. Plus, their 2026 draft class has also earned strong grades almost across the board.
There's no such thing as a perfect offseason, though—and the Panthers have made a couple of questionable decisions. Perhaps the strangest one came when they decided to make a change at the backup quarterback position—trading Andy Dalton to the Philadelphia Eagles and replacing him with Kenny Pickett.
At his best moments in college, Pickett looked something like a smaller, quicker version of Aaron Rodgers or Andrew Luck. But exactly none of that has carried over to the NFL level.
While he has a winning record as a starter (16-11), that's almost entirely due to his playing for good teams. Pickett has completed 62.4 percent of his passes, has thrown as many interceptions as a touchdowns and his career passer rating is just 78.2.
According to Bill Barnwell at ESPN, signing Pickett is the worst move the Panthers have made this year. Barnwell writes:
If signing a backup quarterback to a one-year, $4 million deal turns out to be the worst move the Panthers made this year, then they can probably live with that—especially if it means that Phillips lives up to his massive $120 million pact.
However, if the Pickett signing goes bad, it'll go really bad. Pickett would be fine to start for a game or two in the event of a minor sprained ankle or a sore hamstring to starter Bryce Young. But it may take one major injury for all of the good work that general manager Dan Morgan did this offseason to come crashing down.
Follow @ThePanthersWire on Twitter/X for more Panthers content.
This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers' Kenny Pickett deal earns a wag of the finger from ESPN
Continue reading...
