Baker Mayfield (and the remaining $1.35 million of his 2022 salary) is officially off the Carolina Panthers’ hands.
After his somewhat surprising release about 28 hours ago, the fifth-year quarterback has been claimed off waivers by the Los Angeles Rams.
The Panthers, behind a push from former head coach Matt Rhule, traded for Mayfield back on July 6. Despite being the logical favorite to start under center for Rhule, 2018’s first overall pick was pitted against 2018’s third overall pick Sam Darnold in a preseason quarterback competition—one the former would, of course, win.
Mayfield went on to appear in seven games for the Panthers—passing for 1,313 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions while reaching career-lows in completion percentage (57.8), yards per attempt (6.4) and passer rating (74.4). He led Carolina to a 1-5 record in his six starts.
As for the Panthers, they’ll be moving forward—ironically enough—with Darnold under center for their Week 14 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.