It’s no secret that Carolina Panthers quarterbacks Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield will battle in training camp for the starting job. That was made clear a few weeks ago.
Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Darnold addressed Carolina’s quarterback situation. He also revealed his true feelings about Mayfield.
Darnold told reporters that he’s “cool” with Mayfield.
“Me and Baker are cool,” Darnold said, via NFL.com. “… We’re going to be able to compete and have fun with it. But at the end of the day, this is a business, and we both take our craft and what we do very seriously. So it’s going to be very serious when it’s time to compete. But off the field and all that stuff, me and Baker are really cool.”
Darnold noted that both quarterbacks view themselves as the Week 1 starter for the Panthers.
“It’s always fun to compete and to be able to have someone to compete with,” he explained. “At the same time, in our eyes, we’re both the starting quarterback for this team right now, and that’s how we’re going to view it.”
Last season, Darnold completed 59.9 percent of his passes for 2,527 yards with nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Darnold will need to look sharp in training camp if he wants to win the starting job.
The Panthers will kick off the regular season against Mayfield’s former team, the Cleveland Browns.