The Carolina Panthers aren’t done yet.
After trading away the best player on the roster in Christian McCaffrey, the Panthers steamrolled Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, winning 21-3 at home.
Since he joined the Bucs, Brady was 4-0 in his meetings with the Panthers and averaged 37.5 points per game in those matchups. This time around, the offense was held to just one field goal, and he finished with 290 passing yards and 5.9 per attempt.
While Carolina’s defense stymied Brady, PJ Walker was commanding a fiery Panthers offense that had yet to be seen in 2022.
With the win, Carolina snaps a three-game losing streak and currently sits at 2-5. Being just one game behind in the division, the Panthers should ride the hot hand with Walker at quarterback.
PJ Walker’s unusual path to the NFL
PJ Walker Appreciation Tweet:
Undrafted out of Temple
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 23, 2022
PJ Walker didn’t have the typical path to get to the NFL. He wasn’t highly recruited and didn’t attend one of the blue-blooded college programs.
He attended Temple and was a four-year starter, leading the Owls to the most success the school had ever seen. In his time as a starter, they achieved back-to-back 10-win seasons and consecutive bowl appearances for the first time in program history.
After going undrafted in 2017, he had multiple stints with the Indianapolis Colts on the practice squad between 2017-19 before being allocated to the Houston Roughnecks in the newly-formed XFL in 2020.
In the short-lived inaugural XFL season, Walker played like a man amongst boys, leading Houston to a 5-0 record while completing 65% of his passes for a league-high 1,338 yards and 15 touchdowns. His 104.4 passer rating ranked second best, narrowly behind NFL journeyman Josh Johnson. He was also named the Star of the Week after a dominant 37-17 victory in the season opener.
Walker’s bright moments in the XFL brought him to Carolina in 2020 to reunite with the now-former head coach Matt Rhule. Fast forward three years and Walker outplayed one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
Walker shines in a dominant win
Walker played a complete, mistake-free game against the Bucs. He completed 16-of-22 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns. His 126.5 passer rating in the game was the third-highest of the week, only behind Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow.
The stat line might not jump off the page, but it’s a step in the right direction from what was happening the first six weeks of the season. His passing yards are the most a Panthers quarterback has had this season without committing a turnover.
The game plan also drastically changed with the passing game centered around getting DJ Moore the ball. He was targeted 10 times — seven more than any other Panther — and caught seven passes for 69 yards and a touchdown. His reception and receiving yards were both season highs.
He made the dominant Bucs defense almost unrecognizable. He led the Panthers to three touchdown drives, something that Tampa Bay has only allowed to happen one other time this season.
According to Pro Football Focus, the Temple product was the highest-graded quarterback in Week 7 and made six big-time throws. He only had four in his career leading into this game. It was an outing for the ages for Walker, so much so that he might just retain the starting job for the coming weeks.
Walker deserves the starting nod over Baker Mayfield
RELATED: Christian McCaffrey’s Time in Carolina Is Over, but His Legacy Will Live On
Baker Mayfield is expected to be active for next week. He’s missed the last two games recovering from a high-ankle sprain suffered against the San Francisco 49ers. And while he’s more experienced and boasts a more conventional NFL resume — Carolina traded for him this offseason, theoretically thinking he’d elevate the offense — the former Brown is not a better option than Walker at the moment.
Now is not the time to worry about hurt feelings. Mayfield is in the final year of his rookie deals, earning north of $14 million. He’s been given one opportunity after another to prove he’s capable of being a starting quarterback in the NFL but has fallen short each of the past two seasons.
Walker may not be the long-term answer the Panthers are looking for, but he’s earned the right to play in some more games. The offense looked more explosive than ever before this season and clearly rallied behind the former-XFL quarterback.
Believe it or not, the Panthers have a path to being first in the NFC South, despite being three games below .500. Carolina faces the Atlanta Falcons (3-4) while the Buccaneers (3-4) play the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday Night Football. If the Bucs lose and the Panthers defeat the Falcons on Sunday, they’ll retake the top spot in the division.
A few days ago, it appeared the Panthers were headed toward a rebuild and could make the top selection in the 2023 NFL Draft. While that’s still a possibility, interim head coach Steve Wilks isn’t interested in waving the white flag just yet and is using the rest of the season as his audition to retain the position. Snatching the division away from Brady in the twilight of his illustrious career would give David Tepper a lot to think about.
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