Panthers OC backtracks after saying Sam Darnold is starter

The Carolina Panthers might still be in the market for a franchise quarterback, but their starter for the 2022 season could already be on the roster.

On Tuesday, when offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo was asked whether Sam Darnold is one of the reasons he took the job as the offensive coordinator in Carolina, he said yes.

But quickly after, the former New York Giants head coach he retracted that statement, saying that he had "put his foot in his mouth."

He ultimately clarified that head coach Matt Rhule will have final say in who serves as starting quarterback, but stated "the way it is in the building right now, Sam is our starting quarterback."

Though McAdoo has never coached Darnold, he does have a history of being intrigued by the quarterback dating back to his days as the Giants' head coach when Darnold was entering the NFL as one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2018 NFL Draft.

Though he liked aspects of Darnold's game, he wasn't a fan of his throwing motion, which he stated to the New York Post in 2018.

"I think he's special," McAdoo told the Post. "He's obviously a talented guy, he can make plays with his feet. I'd just have a hard time drafting a guy in the first round where you don't necessarily like the way he throws.

"He can overcome it, guys have, but that's something that's a challenge for me. I'm gonna be looking at that, trying to fix it, because it's a fundamental flaw, and I believe in the fundamentals. The quarterback, his No. 1 job, is to pass the football. If I don't like the way he throws the ball, I have a hard time picking him, right?"

Now, McAdoo will have the chance to see Darnold up close.

And maybe, together, the two can fix Carolina in its entirety.