Gross Bombs: NFL Props for Week 16
Josh Gross
The New York Jets traded quarterback Sam Darnold to the Carolina Panthers for a 2021 sixth-round pick to go along with second- and fourth-round picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Jets trade Sam Darnold to Panthers
Analysis: Darnold is finally in a competent NFL offense. Going from Adam Gase to Joe Brady is like going from a TV dinner to a five-star restaurant. During his time with the Jets, Darnold was never surrounded with enough talent to succeed and assuming he starts for the Panthers, he’ll have more than enough with D.J. Moore, Robby Anderson and Christian McCaffrey. While many have given up on Darnold, there is still potential within the 23-year old, especially in a much better offensive system. He’s historically targeted the slot over the course of his career, but that is also a huge part of Gase’s offenses, so it’ll be interesting to see how he reunites with Anderson, who was a vertical threat with the Jets. However, in 2020 with Carolina, Anderson averaged 6.3 yards before the catch per reception (91st among all players) while lining up in the slot 32.3% of the time. During his final season with the Jets, Anderson was in the slot under 20% of the time and averaged 11.3 yards before the catch per reception. Darnold has some post-hype sleeper appeal in his new city, and his arrival shouldn't really be viewed as a downgrade or upgrade for the pass-catchers.
