By the end of the 2021 regular season, McCaffrey will have missed more than two out of every three Panthers games over the past two years (23 missed games out of 33) due to injury.
What transpired since then can only be described as truly poor luck.
#Christian mccaffrey plaaying for new england pro
The Stanford star missed one game in school because of a pulled groin and sat out by choice for a bowl game, but he had otherwise been available for every single contest between getting to college and finishing his third pro season.
There was nothing that would have told the Panthers that McCaffrey would become injury-prone. It edged out Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliot at the time for the highest-paid running back in average annual earnings, a value still unsurpassed today.īut as ESPN’s Bill Barnwell pointed out, Hurney’s reasoning wasn’t necessarily wrong at the time. The Panthers and general manager Marty Hurney signed McCaffrey to a then-record setting four-year, $64 million contract, including $38.1 million guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $16 million. His breakout MVP-caliber 2019 saw him gain over 2,300 yards from scrimmage along with 21 touchdownsīy April of 2020, franchise quarterback Cam Newton had been released, linebacker Luke Kuechly had retired and one might argue the team had extra incentive to keep McCaffrey in Carolina. Over 20 he would earn over 4,000 yards, making him one of the most dominant overall backs in the game. McCaffrey chipped in over 1,000 combined rushing and receiving yards that rookie season. The soon-to-be-fired general manager also drafted Ohio State gadget player Curtis Samuel with his second-round choice. Gettleman swung for the fences and gave Cam Newton a weapon he’d use to lead the Panthers to a Wild Card birth that year. Jonathan Stewart had over 7,000 rushing yards and nine seasons under his belt and then general manager Dave Gettleman needed to address the position. *- To be fair to them, they did have a 28-year-old Cam Newton on their roster at the time. 8 overall pick in the 2017 draft, choosing the Stanford do-it-all back over quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson*, cornerbacks Marshawn Lattimore, Marlon Humphrey and Tre’Davious White, and edge rusher Haason Reddick. The Panthers drafted McCaffrey with the No.
The story of Run CMC Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports It would be one thing if there wasn’t talent going around, if these were the only good running backs in the league.” But as we know, this isn’t the case. Like McCaffrey, injuries have kept Barkley in street clothes for a significant chunk of his NFL career thus far.Īs SB Nation’s James Dator writes, “team after team are getting burned by committing to running backs. The New York Giants may find themselves in the same situation should they choose to resign Saquon Barkley. What Carolina is going through is nothing new in today’s NFL. It’s not McCaffrey’s fault, but rather a “perfect storm” of casual factors, fueled by the fact that running backs take the highest amount of abuse in the game. But he’s another example of a marquee second-contract running back who’s overall production/return cannot live up to the amount of capital his team invested in him. He’s beloved among Panthers fans and great off the field.
McCaffrey is spectacular and highly productive when he plays. This year marks the second consecutive season in which the 25-year-old will conclude his season on the injured reserve. On the other, Tepper’s cash is burning into thin air every time McCaffrey doesn’t step on the field when his team plays. On one side, owner David Tepper and the front office are paying their star running back Christian McCaffrey big money: a salary cap hit that doubles to $14 million next year. The Carolina Panthers have an untenable situation on their hands, a blitzkrieg of misfortune coming at them from two directions.
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