Unfortunately, we won’t be seeing a four-quarterback rotation from Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule to close out the season.
On Tuesday, the team announced the release of Matt Barkley. The move now leaves them with three quarterbacks on the active roster—Cam Newton, Sam Darnold and P.J. Walker
Barkley signed with Carolina back on Nov. 9, shortly following the right shoulder fracture sustained by Darnold in the team’s Week 9 loss to the New England Patriots. The 31-year-old, who had just been removed from the reserve/COVID-19 list, served as some insurance at the position and was active for just one afternoon over his six-game stint.
In the games he was active in over his six years on the field, the 2013 fourth-round pick completed 212 of his 363 passes (58.4 percent) for 2,699 yards, 11 touchdowns and 22 interceptions.
His release, perhaps, shows that the Panthers remain confident about the health of Darnold—who missed the five games prior to the Week 16 outing. The returning fourth-year passer notched 190 passing yards in the 32-6 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
