Carolina Panthers QB Sam Darnold Forced to Leave With Injury

Sam Darnold of the Carolina Panthers had to leave the game on a stretcher Friday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

During a play where he threw an interception, Darnold had his ankle rolled up by a defender of the Buffalo Bills. Darnold was in obvious pain and couldn’t put any weight on his leg. Initial tests taken after the game showed that Darnold suffered a high ankle sprain.

The Panthers had already named Baker Mayfield as the starting quarterback this season, but this still comes as a blow to the team who lost rookie QB Matt Corral last week due to a foot injury. The Panthers will only have two healthy quarterbacks on the roster for Week 1 when they take on the Cleveland Browns, Mayfield, and P.J. Walker.

Some believe the Panthers are just a QB and health away from competing for a playoff spot this season. Well, you can argue that they have a QB upgrade in Mayfield; they have to hope that Christian McCaffrey can stay healthy for an entire season, something he hasn’t done since the 2019 season. The Panthers are expected to finish third in the NFC South this season. They are at +1500 to win the division. You can find the odds for every team to win their division at the FanDuel Sportsbook.