What’s next for Baker Mayfield after his release by Panthers?

Greg Auman

NFC South Reporter

The Baker Mayfield era of Panthers football is ending even sooner than expected.

Carolina is releasing the former No. 1 overall pick, just five months after trading a 2024 fifth-round pick to acquire him from the Browns. Mayfield, 27, went 1-4 as a starter this season, missing three games with a sprained ankle but managing only six touchdowns against six interceptions when healthy.

The Panthers, struggling to a 4-8 record that had coach Matt Rhule fired after five games, had switched to another former high draft pick, Sam Darnold, so Mayfield’s value on the roster was only as a backup, something PJ Walker can suffice as now that he’s healthy.

Panthers interim coach Steve Wilks said Mayfield requested his release after being told that he was moving down the QB depth chart to third-string.

“We had a conversation today. I talked to the guys [that] Sam would be the starter this week against Seattle and PJ would be the backup,” Wilks said. “Baker has been nothing but a professional since he’s been here, a complete pro. Tremendous respect for him … This is a tough business. Sitting in this seat, it’s a tough decision on my part, but something I felt was the best move for the team moving forward.”

With several starting quarterbacks going down with injuries Sunday, Mayfield could have demand as a waiver claim, perhaps with a team as relevant as the 49ers, who just lost starter Jimmy Garoppolo to a season-ending foot injury, after losing starter Trey Lance in September. A team claiming Mayfield would pay about $1.4 million for five weeks, and in theory could recoup a compensatory late-round draft pick in 2024 if he signs a qualifying contract in free agency this spring. San Francisco is well down the list of teams in waiver priority, so a majority of the league would need to pass on Mayfield for him to be claimed by the 49ers.

Mayfield has seen his stock drop considerably in the past two years, after leading the Browns to an 11-5 record in 2020 and a wild-card win for their first playoff victory in 26 years. After dealing with injuries in 2021, he was displaced by Cleveland’s acquisition of Deshaun Watson, landing with Carolina with a chance to reestablish himself there.

Carolina has twice in two years traded for former high draft picks, only to see them struggle as reclamation projects. They gave up second-, fourth- and sixth-round draft picks to get Darnold from the Jets last year, but he had more interceptions (13) than touchdown passes (9) in 11 starts last season, prompting the Panthers to try more of the same with Mayfield.

All three veteran quarterbacks will be free agents this spring — Walker is just a restricted free agent, but his role with the team was partly because he played for Rhule at Temple, and that connection is gone. Rookie quarterback Matt Corral, this year’s third-round pick from Ole Miss, suffered a season-ending Lisfranc injury in his foot in preseason, and he could be overwritten by a younger quarterback if the Panthers use their first-round pick on one.

Carolina has gone 3-4 under Wilks, including divisional wins over the Bucs and Falcons and a 23-10 win over the Broncos before the bye week. Each win, however, lowers the Panthers’ spot in the upcoming draft — they currently pick fifth overall, but were as high as second before the win over Denver. If dealing away Mayfield makes them a lesser team if they sustain another quarterback injury, that might not be the worst thing for the franchise’s long-term future.

Strange as it seems, the Panthers are also at worst two games out of first place in the NFC South with five weeks to play, as all four teams have losing records, including the first-place Bucs (5-6), who play host to the Saints (4-8) on Monday night. If the Saints win that game, Carolina would nearly control its destiny for a division title. The Panthers close the season against those two teams, so in the least they can play a spoiler role in which middling NFC South team gets to host a playoff game.

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Greg Auman is FOX Sports’ NFC South reporter, covering the Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers and Saints. He is in his 10th season covering the Bucs and the NFL full-time, having spent time at the Tampa Bay Times and The Athletic. You can follow him on Twitter at @gregauman.