After several months of shopping him around, the New York Jets finally have found a taker for quarterback Sam Darnold’s services. 

The Jets announced Monday they have traded Darnold to the Carolina Panthers. New York will receive a sixth-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and second- and fourth-round picks in next year’s draft. 

That is a pretty good haul for a player who has yet to prove that he is a big-time NFL quarterback. Despite the Jets’ hopes of stardom for Darnold, he has yet to become the franchise quarterback they hoped he would be. 

Yes, he has shown flashes, but Darnold consistently has ranked near the bottom of the NFL in most meaningful categories for a passer. Yes, some of that can be blamed on the lack of proven players in his supporting cast, and shaky protection from an offensive line that was ranked 29th last season by Pro Football Focus. 

Still, Darnold (45 career touchdown passes, 39 interceptions, 78.6 passer rating) has shown time after time that he fails to find secondary receivers unless he is out of the pocket. He doesn’t exploit favorable matchups when they present themselves, and he also has trouble finding his “hot” receivers in blitz situations. For instance, when he reinjured his right (throwing) shoulder in a loss at Kansas City on Nov. 1 last season, he failed to unload the ball immediately to the open slot receiver, Jeff Smith, despite the fact that the pressure came from a blitzing slot cornerback. 

New York general manager Joe Douglas had said during the 2019 season that Darnold was “untouchable.” But then Darnold had another disappointing campaign in 2020, with nine touchdown passes and 11 interceptions while missing four games because of two separate injuries to his throwing shoulder. 

The Jets had to make a decision soon on Darnold, because they had to decide by early May whether or not to pick up his fifth-year option on the third-round pick from the 2018 draft. If they did, they would have had to pay him nearly $19 million next year, per overthecap.com.

Obviously, this means the Jets will stay at No. 2 and pick a quarterback, and it seems very likely that BYU’s Zach Wilson will be the selection.  

Douglas, head coach Robert Saleh and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur all went to Wilson’s pro day in Provo, Utah on March 26, the same day that San Francisco swung a blockbuster trade with Miami to move up to No. 3 overall in the first round of the draft. The fact that the Jets had stood pat at 2 was the first sign that Darnold’s days as a Jet were numbered. 

For Carolina, the trade could set up a competition between veteran incumbent Teddy Bridgewater, who posted a 92.1 passer rating last season. He threw for 3,733 yards and 15 touchdowns with 11 interceptions for the Panthers, who went 5-11. 

Carolina likely is hoping that innovative offensive coordinator Joe Brady can have the same effect on Darnold that he had on Joe Burrow, who transferred from Ohio State to LSU and became a superstar on the Bayou. Burrow, with help from Brady as LSU’s passing game coordinator in 2018 and 2019, eventually led the Tigers to a national championship in 2019 and became the overall No. 1 pick of the draft in 2020 by the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Perhaps the Panthers also believe Darnold’s growth was hampered by the poor coaching of Adam Gase, and that he can have a rebirth similar to the one enjoyed by Ryan Tannehill in Tennessee. Tannehill played under Gase in Miami.

The trade also will reunite Darnold with one of his favorite targets during his Jets’ tenure, wideout Robby Anderson, who had 95 receptions for 1,096 yards for the Panthers last season after leaving New York via free agency.