The Carolina Panthers have confirmed that PJ Walker will continue as the starting quarterback for them in Week 9 of the 2022 NFL season when they travel to face the Cincinnati Bengals. Meanwhile, their starting quarterback Baker Mayfield has been demoted to a backup role for the outfit.
The announcement of the decision was made by Steve Wilks, the head coach of the Carolina Panthers on Monday, October 31. As per the head coach, Mayfield took the decision on the chin and was an ultimate professional over being relegated to the bench.
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PJ Walker is currently 1-2 as the starting quarterback for the Carolina Panthers, who find themselves at the bottom of the NFC South standings, following the Atlanta Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints in the top three spots. They were beaten by the Atlanta Falcons 34-37 in Week 8 and missed the chance of climbing to the top of the division table.
The Panthers’ new starting quarterback almost rallied his side to a win over the Falcons on Sunday, October 30, when he registered 19 successful passes out of 36 attempts for 317 yards, 1 passing touchdown, 1 interception and 1 sack. He connected with DJ Moore for a 62-yard touchdown with only 12 seconds left on the clock for the regulation time in the game.
However, Moore put his helmet off after scoring the touchdown in the final moments of the penultimate quarter, which resulted in a penalty and an increase in the length of the subsequent 32-yard field goal, which was missed by kicker Eddy Pineiro. The game then continued into overtime and the Falcons clinched the victory over the Panthers.
However, the Panthers’ head coach revealed that his team will be retaining Eddy Pineiro as the kicker against the Cincinnati Bengals and are not planning to bring in a new kicker for Week 9.
PJ Walker stands to earn $895,000 in the 2022 NFL season. Meanwhile, Baker Mayfield, who was relegated as the backup quarterback for the Panthers, is currently on a contract worth $18.86 million this season. He has also registered 84 successful passes out of 153 attempts for 962 yards, 4 passing touchdowns and 4 interceptions this season.
