Getty Image / Kevin Sabitus
Near the end of the 2021 college football season, there were a few quarterbacks that looked like candidates to be the first one selected in the upcoming NFL Draft.
Malik Willis, Kenny Pickett, and Matt Corral all seemed to have a shot at being the top QB in their class.
Then Corral suffered an injury in the Sugar Bowl that kept him from participating in the NFL Combine.
He was able to throw at his Pro Day, but that didn’t end up being enough to keep him from sliding into the 3rd round of the draft.
Despite his slide in the draft, Corral actually ended up in what seemed to be a pretty good situation.
He was drafted by a Carolina Panthers team that had struggled in the passing game for the previous few yers and had Sam Darnold and PJ Walker as the top QBs on their depth chart.
It was a situation where it wouldn’t have been shocking to see Corral end up getting a crack at the starting job by the end of his rookie season.
Unfortunately, another injury ended up costing him that rookie season.
This offseason, the Panthers traded for the top pick in the draft and selected Bryce Young in a move that removed any hope for Corral to become their starter.
Now he’ll have to try and find another team where he’ll get a chance to compete.
According to The Charlotte Observer’s Mike Kaye, the Carolina Panthers have decided to waive Corral.
The #Panthers have waived QB Matt Corral, per league source.
— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) August 30, 2023
Corral didn’t impress much in this year’s preseason, but he’ll certainly find a home on some team’s practice squad before the regular season.
It’s tough to see a player that showed so much promise in college have their career derailed by injuries the way Matt Corral’s has been, but maybe we’ll still see him carve out a role for himself somewhere in the league one of these days.