Rashard Higgins Believes the Panthers Have 'Every Piece to the Puzzle'

Rashard Higgins agreed to a one-year, $1.1 million deal with the Carolina Panthers back in March. At the time, neither he or the Panthers had any inkling as to who would be lining up under center in 2022 with rumors swirling about Deshaun Watson, Jimmy Garoppolo, and prospects in the NFL Draft.

When Higgins was looking around the free agent market, he liked what he saw in the Panthers' organization despite the uncertainty at quarterback. It was a team that had a solid foundation that just needed to add a few pieces to take the next step.

“Carolina, it’s a young team and I felt like they needed some leadership. Somebody to come in and just play that veteran role and here I am. I wanted to change some things around and being in Cleveland for six years, I know what it’s like to go through the ups and downs. Me helping the team win, that’s what I’m all about and that’s why I’m here.”

It just so happened to work out that he'll be back with the quarterback he has spent the last four seasons with in Cleveland - Baker Mayfield.

“On the field, he’s a leader. He’s all about winning," Higgins said about Mayfield. "Off the field, he’s about winning. We could be playing video games and he wants to win. You know what I’m saying? We do everything to win and a lot of guys were asking me what he’s like and like bro, he wants to win. At the end of the day, he was trying his hardest when we were in Cleveland to win. We were trying to turn that program around. Took us to the playoffs for the first time in I don’t know how long. A guy like that, that’s what we need.”

Of all the receivers the Panthers have on the roster, Higgins has the most experience working with both quarterbacks. He spent the spring/early summer working with Sam Darnold in OTAs and minicamp and of course has several seasons under his belt with Mayfield. Although he has recorded the most reps with the two battling it out for the starting job, he doesn't see the competition leaning in the favor either Mayfield or Darnold, yet.

“I need a little bit more time. We haven’t had a real game yet and I need a little more time.”

The quarterback battle will play itself out over the next couple of weeks or so and regardless of who wins the job, Higgins feels like this team has a chance to do something special in 2022. One of the first things he did when he signed with the Panthers was rewatch many of last year's games and immediately, he saw the potential in this young team.

“I think we’ve got every piece to the puzzle. We’ve just got to put it together. It’s still early. Last year, we started out 3-0 and we want to start off 7-0 this year. A lot of those games, I’ll have to go back and check the tapes, but a lot of those games they lost were close games. I remember being in Cleveland, us losing the close games, it’s about the little things. And when we go back and watch tape, we need to start working on the little things during practice in order to get over the hump. That’s going to help us win those games when it’s late in the fourth quarter and we’re down three points and all we need is a touchdown. Let’s go out and execute.”

Situational football is something this team has been honing in on all offseason long. Improving in that area alone could be the difference in winning six games and picking in the top ten of the draft or winning nine to ten games and being in the playoff conversation. 

Having an experienced offensive coordinator such as Ben McAdoo will allow the Panthers to be more successful in critical situations. He's seen just about every coverage, every blitz, and knows exactly how to attack it. Now that Higgins has spent the last several months getting to know the playbook and scheme, he's confident that there will be significant improvement on that side of the ball.

“Honestly, McAdoo’s offense is a quarterback friendly offense. He has the freedom to do whatever he chooses, whenever he chooses. My role will be knowing the positions. Know the positions, know when it’s my turn to go in. I’m going to make the plays as they come to me and that’s why they brought me here. I’m excited to be here and let’s just keep grinding baby.”