Quarterbacks Sam Darnold, left, and Baker Mayfield spent time better forgotten in Carolina, but have moved on to better days with their current teams. [ NELL REDMOND | AP (2022) ]
TAMPA — They were drafted to be saviors, then recast as survivors.
Three years ago, Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold shared more than a quarterback room with the Carolina Panthers. Both benched but neither broken, the discarded former Heisman Trophy finalists took similar paths back to relevance.
Darnold, once the Jets’ failed No. 3 overall pick out of Southern Cal who played for Todd Bowles, got his reset in one year as a backup with the 49ers but was revived last season by winning 14 games in Minnesota.
Mayfield, the former No. 1 pick of the Browns out of Oklahoma who was released by the Panthers, had a rebirth a couple days after being claimed by the Rams and is now thriving during his third season in Tampa Bay.
On Sunday, they will collide again. Not as castoffs. Not with hype or hardware. Just another chance to continue to prove so many people wrong.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield has enjoyed the best years of his career since coming to Tampa in 2023.
“Sam and I are really close,” Mayfield said. “I’m happy for him from going a couple different places that weren’t great for us to having a good opportunity elsewhere, it’s fun to see. I knew he just needed that chance, and he’s thriving now. It’s good to see, but hopefully not this weekend.
“That whole (Carolina) QB room with PJ Walker, Sam, and I — it was fun. (We were) guys that have played ball, knew we needed each other in that room. … We’d just bounce things off (each other), have normal football conversations, grow and learn together, and go from there.”
Since joining the Bucs on a one-year, $4 million make-it deal in 2023, Mayfield leads all quarterbacks in touchdown passes with 77. He has won two NFC South titles, a division playoff game against the Eagles and earned two Pro Bowl appearances.
“Going back to the draft and really, that year in Carolina that we spent together, you know that was a special year just being able to spend it with Bake and you know, that entire quarterback room that we had,” Darnold said during his news conference in Seattle Wednesday. “It was fun to get to know him and (his wife) Emily and his entire family.
“His resilience I think is the biggest piece. Obviously, he’s got all the talent in the world and the intangibles that you need as a quarterback. But he’s resilient. He’s a good dude.”
Ironically, Bowles has coached them both. Mayfield, the Heisman Trophy winner from Oklahoma, went No. 1 overall to the Browns in 2018. Bowles selected Darnold two picks later and the Jets paid a hefty price for him: their first-round selection (sixth overall), two second-round picks (37th, 49th overall) and a second-rounder in 2019 to Indianapolis in exchange for the Colts’ No. 3 overall pick.
Thanks to a stellar 2024 season with the Vikings, quarterback Sam Darnold landed a three-year, $100.5 million contract with Seattle.
As a rookie, Darnold went 4-9, passing for 2,865 yards with 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. After only three seasons, he was traded to Carolina for a sixth-round pick in 2021 and second- and fourth-round picks in 2022.
Mayfield went 1-5 as a starter with the Panthers before he was benched and then released.
On Wednesday, Mayfield was asked if he and Darnold reminisce about the “good old days” in Carolina?
“Reminisce about what days?” Mayfield said.
The good old days in Carolina, he’s reminded.
“Nope. No, we don’t,” he said.
Bowles has a rare vantage point of both quarterbacks, having studied them when they came out in the draft.
“I think both of them have grown,” Bowles said. “They came out in the same draft class, two picks apart — one at one, one at three. To have some success — a little bit of success early — then go through the teams they both went through, there (are) some similarities there. I think Sam has had success where he’s been and Baker has definitely had success here. So, from that standpoint, you can see it, yes."
Baker Mayfield, left, and Sam Darnold work on balance exercises while with the Panthers in 2022. Their careers have become more stable since exiting Carolina.
Both have operated good offenses. Former Bucs offensive coordinator and Jaguars head coach Liam Coen and Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak are part of the Sean McVay coaching tree.
Darnold thrived under the Vikings and coach Kevin O’Connell, passing for 4,319 yards with 35 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. That led to a three-year, $100.5 million contract with the Seahawks.
Darnold has never worn his emotions on his sleeve the way Mayfield does. But playing styles don’t determine success.
“He’s a competitor, and he’s pretty fiery with it,” Darnold said of Mayfield. “It’s cool to be able to watch some of his tape when he runs for a first down. You know, getting as excited as he does and he gets the crowd into it.
“It’s fun stuff and I’ve always loved that part of Baker’s game, the way that he plays with so much energy. You can see the passion he has for the game by the way he plays, this tendency to sit and kind of hold grudges against some teams that passed up on him or let him go.”
Both quarterbacks have overcome plenty in their careers. And both are better — not bitter — for it.
Up next
at Seahawks, 4 Sunday TV/radio: CBS; 97.9-FM Line/OU: Seahawks by 4.5; 44.5
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