Diggs was lost in the linebacking corps, but they've been arguably the best unit.
Maybe some leadership was lost with the Harris trade, but that's really difficult to quantify, and with the exception of Godfrey's usual lapses of concentration (which would have been there anyway since god knows fox wouldn't have started Martin over him) the safety play has been alright.
They're not getting any pressure from the middle of the line, but it's not like they were doing that with Lewis last year or Kemo on IR.
Overall I think everyone would agree that the defense has been fine, and have been doing the best they can with the cards they've been dealt (being on the field for 45 minutes a game)
On the other side of the ball, neither Moose nor Hoover are even in the league anymore, so maybe we dodged a bullet on that one. We know that Fox loves sending vets out there after they've outlived their usefulness (rucker, morgan, lucas, foster, jake, etc) and as long as we're not getting production we might as well be giving young people snaps.
The problem as I see it is on the other end of not bringing anyone in. throughout fox's tenure, he's constantly brought in vets to fill in the gaps, and this is the first year I can remember that they didn't do that, with the exception of like ed johnson or whatever but who the f**k is that guy
i'm not excusing richardson or anything and please don't think I am.
However i feel people bitching about the cuts need to refocus their rage to three things related to the salary purge
- not signing a veteran QB. regardless of who was going to start at QB, they needed someone they could turn to for advice that's been through the rigors of an nfl season. as it has turned out, Clausen is the QB going forward. The only person he has to talk to is a shell shocked moore and text messages from Mark Sanchez
- not bringing in a veteran wide receiver. I literally do not care who it was. there is simply not another nfl caliber wide receiver on the team at this moment. steve smith has obviously not taken to the role of mentor.
At some point someone like David gettis or Lefell needs someone they can turn to, and as much as I love the guy I'm not sure Steve Smith is the man.“Whether they want to hear it or not, they get in the game and all of sudden things change and they’re getting smashed up-side the head,” he told Sports Illustrated. “Then they’ll come to me and I’ll kind of give them their space and I’m like, ‘What do I know?’ ”
- the scare with Wharton today, and the play of the offensive line in general, has shown that they might benefit from veteran depth. in 2008, the Panthers built their dominant line by signing every single free agent offensive lineman they could find then sticking with the one that rose to the top. I don't know how much that would have helped the offensive line with their early season struggles, but they're one twisted ankle away from starting someone you've never heard of
it's impossible to quantify the whole leadership thing, and the "young team" thing is pretty tired, but i think jerry richardson has really done his own team and the young players he was leaning on a disservice by throwing them to the wolves without anyone to guide them through the forest.
the offensive was predicated on two things: Moore being who we thought he was and a wide receiver stepping up. now that both of those assumptions have blown up in their face, it's clear that the offense will be ineffective all year, and his statement season might cost him far more.
It's possible that gettis, lefell, and clausen don't develop at all. we've seen plenty of QBs get shell shocked, and everyone knows wide receivers are a crap shoot. we might be ruining all of these young guys before they even get a chance.
basically what i'm saying is that all the cool kids have stopped bitching at jerry for leading the charge on cuts. that isn't having nearly as large an impact as him not signing anyone.
anyway here is a hot chick
Edited by Fiz, 26 September 2010 - 10:20 PM.
