SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Carolina Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold thinks of leadership as something you do more than something you say. He’s never forced it in a rah-rah way, allowing it to come out so subtly that often only teammates and coaches see it.
Part of it comes from being raised by a father who in college played offensive line -- the grinders of the team who go about their business with little to no fanfare.
Part of it just comes naturally.
So, on Tuesday, it wasn’t that Darnold didn’t comment on whether he’d been vaccinated for COVID-19 (after saying in June he was not vaccinated) that spoke volumes, it was that he wasn’t wearing a mask that mattered.