In the 2020 NFL Draft, many Panthers fans pounded the table for Isaiah Simmons, a defensive swiss-army knife out of Clemson. Marty Hurney and Matt Rhule instead opted for the mammoth defensive tackle Derrick Brown. Waiting might end up paying off for the Panthers, as they were able to get a similarly versatile defender at the end of the second round in Jeremy Chinn. Chinn has been impressive so far in camp, by all accounts, and Matt Rhule said today that the rookie will “play a lot” on defense this year, even hinting that Chinn would be starting Day One. So far Rhule has only mentioned safety and big nickel as positions for the young playmaker, but it would behoove the team to use him like the new highest-paid “safety” in the NFL: Budda Baker.
Budda Baker's career snaps by position:
— PFF (@PFF) August 25, 2020
Edge - 186
LB - 460
Slot CB - 882
FS - 708 pic.twitter.com/NRi3t7QMNx
As you can see, the Arizona Cardinals put their play-maker in positions to make plays, even if he isn’t the prototypical player for that role. Moving Baker around so much has its drawbacks, namely the fact that he does not have a single interception in his NFL career, but his impact is felt in other ways. Individual statistics don’t matter as much when it comes to winning football games: if Chinn is a player who can wreak havoc at different spots and make life easier for the other guys around him, then it’s a net win. Here’s hoping the Panthers find creative ways to use all their versatile weapons, not just the ones on offense.