All Activity

This is exactly the same as saying if we make the playoffs I'd rather lose in the first round than lose in the conference championship game because of draft picks. Like what are we even talking about here.

Yeah, the Leafs game is so predicated on being able to enter the zone with speed. And, our entire identity is denying those quick zone entries by standing you up out tge line, forcing a dump in and then outworking you for the puck. The alleycat's whole MO is quite simply to commit so many penalties that the refs can't call all of them and trying to injure the opposing teams' MVP. I'd rather face Toronto. But, man would it feel great to be the ones to send Chucklefug and Ratboy packing for Cancun!

I guarantee you non of the teams who got bounced in the first round give a damn that they fell a few draft spots

I know This team may not be as "talented" as the past two years, but i have to say its definitely built to win playoff games the size and toughness we've added who also happen to be guys who have recently lifted the cup makes a difference, I'm not going to root for either team tonight, while I think we would dispatch Toronto easier, im stating to get a team of destiny feeling for our squad...... If its Florida we have a score to settle and beating the Champs would have the guys amped for the finals.... And lets be honest we have a TON of young talent soon to be in the NHL and 30+ million in cap space. Even if we dont win it all this year this year HAS been a success many thought we would be fighting for a playoff bid this year not making quick work of two divisional opponents in the first two rounds.

Another tanking thread

What worries me about Florida, is 2 things 1)Rod doesn't have a good track record against his former coaches in the playoffs 2)alot of our core group, Svech,Aho,Slavin,Jordan etc was apart of that sweep 2 years ago, will that motivate them, or have the opposite effect, make them overthink and beat them before they even take the ice Toronto won't be pushovers, but they will be a clean slate, with no baggage

Then don't tune in. It's really not a hard concept to understand, if your making your decision based on your own personal needs/feelings as opposed to what is best for the future of the franchise, then it's a you problem, not a Panthers problem. When the season is already lost, every fan should be rooting for the same thing. The team plays hard until the final whistle of the season and keeps improving as a team and individually, but in the end, we still come up short and lose games, and preferably because the other team beat us, not because we screwed up and found a way to lose due to our own fault. Look at it this way... If we are up 1 or 2 points with 3 seconds left in the game and the other team is lining up for a FG. Beyond the joy of victory or the disappointment of defeat, what impact does the other team making or missing the FG have on our team the following season? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING Except where we draft and what teams we play due to our finish in the division. The players and coaches on the team would have the exact same level of improvement and learnings about themselves individually and as a team whether the FG is made or missed. The ONLY difference in the end is the record in the standings and if the win or loss number changes. If you want to argue if making the playoffs to lose in the first round or just missing them is better or worse, that's totally fair and I can at least understand the other side of it. But in what is already a lost season, if you're not hoping your team plays well but ends up losing, then you're cutting off your nose to spite your face. You're hoping for a moment of happiness at the detriment of the franchise's future, and in turn, you're basically then happy for a moment to only set yourself up for future further disappointment.

If we’re eliminated I want the wins more. The season is already a disappointment and if I’m not pulling for wins why bother to tune in?

Two things terribly wrong with this post. First is that not one time has myself or anyone else agreeing with me said that the team themselves should think that way or try and lose for positioning. Never once have I suggested the team should purposefully lose games, ever. I honestly can't understand why people keep saying this in posts, not one fan has ever said the players should or would purposefully try to lose. And second, is yes, that has happened and it's happened very recently. The 2020 Bengals were 4-11-1 and then were playing in the SB the very next season. And while it might have been 2 years later and they didn't quite get to the SB, the 2021 Lions were 3-13-1 and then the 2023 Lions were up 24-7 at halftime of the NFC Championship game. The season between those two? They finished 9-8 and only just missed the playoffs. Which is why I keep trying to compare us to the Lions in where we are at in our re-build. Throw out Bryce's rookie year with the Reich staff who just didn't work out and he looked god awful. This past season when we were 5-12 in Canales' 1st season is that 2021 season for the Lions and their 1st season under Campbell. This year is their 2022 where they grew a ton and Campbell's culture building was clear, where I'm saying we'd likely be better off in the long run if we go 8-9 or 9-8 and just miss out on the playoffs (which is still a significant improvement from last year). Then our 2026 is their 2024 when we have a chance to be a real contender after adding a few more pieces and our key players having another year of experience under their belts.

Right but you gotta understand there’s no way the team can think that way. Worry about draft positioning and stuff next offseason. We’ve seen years of shitty football. If they make the playoffs and give whoever they play the fight of their lives it’s still a great season and building block. No team goes from toilet to SB in one season

There are precious few folks still around that would recognize that name.

If we're still in the playoffs hunt, sure. Once we're mathematically eliminated or once it's such a longshot that it's beyond reasonable hope, fug it...

Exactly. There's no such thing as a sure thing but the draft pick value chart exists for a reason. Higher draft picks have higher value, simple as that. If you have hapless idiots making the picks it doesn't matter as much but all things being equal it's better to have more options than less options. Every player that comes off the board is a player you can't add to your roster

As a fan who doesn’t gamble, who doesn’t let my fandom define me to my friends, who doesn’t get too high or too low based on the team’s performance Give me wins. Sunday afternoons are a little bit better when we get them. There is no guarantee I’m going to be here for the next super bowl or five years from now I’ll take the wins today thanks.

I’m not an expert but it just seems like the Canes aggressive forecheck style can really give Torontos breakout fits. They’ve had a really hard time with Florida who does something similar. We got beat by Florida because they were more physical than us. But this years team has guys like Taylor Hall, Jack Roslovic, Eric Robinson, and Jankowski. We have some bigger physical forwards now that really round out the team IMO.

With Freddie Slavin and Svech both playing at MVP levels, no one can touch us. Burns playing well. Imagine if Jarvy and Aho get going…

Just because all draft picks are a gamble doesn't mean you don't have a better chance at hitting on a better player the higher you're drafting. It would literally be like someone saying, I'll give you 1 or 2 free spins on a slot machine, and you say you'll take the 1 because you're not likely to win anything anyways with 1 or 2, so why bother? The Cowboys desperately wanted T-Mac, but because they were 4 picks behind us, they weren't able to get him. If you told Cowboys fans that had they lost 2 more games last year in a lost season, that it would get them the player they wanted so badly, would they in retrospect go back and lose those games to get their guy? 95% of them would take that trade off in a heartbeat, and the others who wouldn't are the fans who would rather enjoy an extra win or two in a poo season to then set themselves up to be better for the next decade. I also think the fans who argue against this thinking, get too caught up in the "well that means you're going to be rooting against us late in the season even if we still have a shot at the playoffs." Which isn't true, it's saying if you're telling me right now we'd make the playoffs but lose in the first round, that I'd rather end up 8-9 or 9-8 and just miss the playoffs because in our opinion, the benefits that come along with that outweigh the benefit of the players getting 1 game of playoff experience.

In relation to tanking. I think you can count on one hand the number of people here who actually want us to lose football games. When accounting for it across the fanbase it amounts to maybe 2% of the entire Panthers fanbase. But you engage with some internet trolls and think haters are coming out of the woodwork and hey look at that it's all a conspiracy that leads to Bryce Young haters. Do you hear yourself sir? If it sounds ridiculous that's because it is. I mean at this point do you see Bryce haters in your dreams? As far as the culture of this franchise goes we seem to be doing better in that department via what we are building right now and with the people we have in place. But we also shouldn't just make assumptions just yet either. The rubber still needs to meet the road. And going back to previous seasons I think we can acknowledge although tanking obviously isn't a thing there were some times where we thought our culture was improving but really it wasn't. Yes I'm looking directly at some of those wins under Wilks. If the culture had truly changed we would not have lost to the Steelers who have been mediocre for years at home the way we did and they were starting Mitch Trubisky ffs. We did not change our culture for the better and we won games that ultimately meant nothing. It was just a brief mirage. We've done this for years now. The harsh truth of the matter is the Panthers have not had a winning season or been to the playoffs in going on 8 years but in those years they've been trying to convince themselves they aren't poo but in the process all they've done throughout most of that time period is squander better draft position and we were still the worst team in the league for our troubles. At the end of the day we should be able to just be adults and reconcile with that. And no that isn't being "pro tank" or any other boogeyman term it's simply recognizing reality.

He's an asset in a game manager role. But as soon as you have to ask him to go out there and try to make plays and not just take what the defense is giving him... well, Darnolding happens.

We haven’t had the right coaching staff since like 2017 and even that’s debatable. Definitely haven’t had the right roster pieces since maybe 2018/2019? Again that’s debatable too. last year I think we got coaching right. Let’s see if this year is roster.

Bears won and it's not even close

I personally think it would be more beneficial to get these young guys a taste of the playoffs and see what it takes to be successful. Which in turn should make them even more hungry to train and become better football players. Not position in the draft considering most at this point know that drafting players is always a gamble at #1 or #17 it doesn't matter. There are busts at all spots. So go win now and get punched in the face in playoffs to show them what a real playoff speed football is like.

Its funny people always talk about the close losses conveniently omitting 2 dog poo teams (NY, Saints) took us completely to the wire one in which we were completely outplayed and one daniel jones mind left body play. The "if" game playing doesnt work in professional sports. The margins are already razor thin and there is no room for "if".

No, I get that. Hell, it still frustrates me too. But damn, I'm not gonna hold it against Bryce or future QBs. I don't want to just keep making the same mistake.

It's frustration by the Cam folks. We had a generational QB and wasted his talent with inept roster building by management. Now we have a QB whom, at best, will be a game manager and the front office is sparing no expense to allow him the very best version of himself. I can see their point, but what is in the past is in the past.