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My whole point in wanting T-Mac was because it unlocks the rest of the offense. Yeah, we were getting by when teams stacked the box with AT but that was it as our only reliable receiver.. and so teams just all out blitz and it not only hurt our pass game but it hurt our run game too as those blitz make it harder to run unless you perfectly block everyone on the first level.

Is it just me or are we staring at a really really talented player at #4? Ace Bailey and VJ Edgecombe are not exactly consolation prizes and either would fit perfectly with this young nucleus.

Amen

Hakstol, Sullivan or Woodcroft would be good choices.

I'm glad we can find common ground on these issues. I think most of the folks in the fanbase are burned out from not only the losing but the same discussions. This is a put up or shut up year in many ways for sure. Hopefully things go relatively according to plan and come December we are talking about further building around our core and competing for the playoffs in the not so distant future instead of bickering about why this or that was a failure yet again. Here's to hoping

It's both somehow. He was trying to say the rest of the team sucks. But, when you say certain guys can't be your best players, you are by default saying those players aren't good enough either.

if Rod is fired, who could the Canes turn to? any good coaches still free?

It's the whole state. I blame Zebulon Vance or maybe the Roanoke colonists. This poo goes back!

I mean a few factors but the design of the offense has more to do with it than anything else IMO. Rod doesnt have any kind of creation going shot wise its all forecheck cycle shoot low danger look for tips and put ins.

I liked his run support and tackling. He gives up some yards but that’s gonna happen when you don’t let Horn shadow the #1 receiver.

I think the recent breakdown video of Bryce(posted in here) shows really the biggest issue from a play callers standpoint that hurts Bryce. He is very often off schedule because he has poor footwork and it can lead to him looking around what appears to be aimlessly because he is waiting for the play to unfold. It also impacts his decision making because he is making decisions before the play is really able to unfold.

Yeah i mean why is it they are your best players? Why do our top guys suddenly disappear over and over and over again? Time to look in the mirror.

It's not impossible to go from worst to first. We kept Evero because anyone in there right mind knew our defense was destroyed by injuries, not the scheme. Evero has been given a plethora of talent between free agency and the draft, not to mention getting DB back. I fully expect our defense to be very good. I have no reason to think Jones would say something like that unless he truly felt like that.

We would’ve played Florida and lost in the 1st instead of the 3rd round. Montreal would have been the 8 seed.

I can't get behind a purely subjective re-draft as a method of defining "top-10 QB" status. That invites bias based on vibes/hypotheticals and can ignore actual on-field performance. You and others have said that Bryce has to be a top-10 QB to justify the pick. That's a high bar, which I'm not against, but we need a clear, consistent way to measure it. When I bring up metrics that Bryce has registered in the top-10 in like BTT%, P2S ratio, catchable deep ball rate, etc... they're waved off as either irrelevant or the expected baseline performance. Meanwhile, volume stats like passing yards or win-loss records, both of which depend heavily on roster talent, health, and coaching, are treated as definitive. That's where the inconsistency kicks in. If no performance metric ever counts in his favor and the answer is always going to be "he should be doing that," then we're not evaluating him... we're just holding him to a curve he can't win against. If this is really about performance standards, then let's define them. But if it's just about confirming prior takes based on height and weight, then let's call it what is it and stop pretending that this is a football analysis discussion.

Just to be clear: I'm not "downplaying" the talent around Bryce... I'm qualifying it. There's a big difference between saying, "we finally have building blocks that we're actually developing" and "we've done enough to say this is a finished product, NO EXCUSES!" It's possible to believe that the 2023 situation was bad and to believe that the current state, while improved, is still incomplete. That's not inconsistency; that's nuance. As for the footwork stuff, again, I've seen the same clips as others. The claim that Bryce is hopping to see over the line just isn't one I've seen corroborated by analysts or tape breakdown. "Both feet off of the ground to throw" happens a ton for QBs (ex: Mahomes, Rodgers, Purdy, etc.), especially when improvising. You're right that there were some encouraging flashes from Bryce last season, and it's nice to finally hear that after so much time was spent pretending otherwise. I'm not arguing that Bryce is elite, I'm just asking that we evaluate him using consistent, measurable criteria to determine his status as a top-10 QB... whether it's via 3rd down %, red zone efficiency, turnover-worthy plays, or yes, big-time throws (which, by the way, has been a valid part of QB evaluation across the league for years even if it wasn't used here during Kyle Allen or Teddy Bridgewater's years. For reference: Allen had 20 BTT at a 3.9% rate. Teddy had 17 BTT at 3.3%). Like you, I'm hoping to see a competent, entertaining offense this season. That's a baseline we can all root for, even if we don't have the same baseline for what makes a QB top-10 (which, to be fair, is what this conversation has been about... though I respect the attempt to reframe it).

I am optimistic that we might be on the verge of fielding a sustainable offense finally. The Bryce stats listed above are definitely encouraging. I don’t want to overly inflate this and disregard the previous 1 and a half seasons of production from Bryce and “cherry pick” stats but do hope the benching turns into an inflection point in his trajectory. Lots of excitement heading into this season.

Summary The 2024 Carolina defense posted a 44.9 grade last year, which was the worst in the NFL since 2020. They also had the worst receiving grade in the NFL despite a QB that emerged in the second half of last year. TMac is most likely WR1 in this class and is now WR1 in Carolina He's going to be incredibly helpful on go balls, dig routes, and in the redzone. Highlights show just that: First highlight is Arizona vs. Utah. 4 verts vs. cover-0, TMac lined up alone on a go ball vs. press = we're launching it Second highlight shows his potential as the X. Runs a backside in-cut and the Tampa-2 MLB sells out on the corner route, leaving his back to TMac. Tough over the middle, explosive after the play. Sees TMac doing a lot of what Mike Evans was asked to do in Tampa. Third highlight shows how effective TMac is in the redzone and it's his one-handed catch vs. Travis Hunter. Brings "indefensible plays." Has size advantage that can beat guys, can jump, and has ridiculous hands. Will help Bryce in year 3 as it will allow him to continue playing "fearless" like he did after coming back from benching. Highlights show where TMac fits and re-emphasizes how he's going to make things easier on go balls, dig routes, and in the redzone: Fourth highlight shows Bryce vs. ATL when he hit AT vs. AJ Terrell down the sideline. Bryce has to hold the single deep safety during his drop to give Thielen a chance (who is only 4yds off of the LOS when Bryce is throwing it). Registers the big-time throw attacking vertically. Fifth highlight is vs. KC on a blitz where Bolton is coming downhill while Karlaftis is dropping back over the middle. Has an in-route that has outside leverage with Chris Jones applying immediate pressure. Layered it over Karlaftis' head for the completion. Sixth highlight is the fade route TD to David Moore vs. Zona. in the redzone. David Moore was the X on this play. Thought this was interesting, especially considering recent conversations about Bryce's intermediate game needing to be better:

Nah its Rod Brindamour 0-11 in the Eastern Conference Finals under him..... Three trips in seven years Zero WINS in the third round.

I think I legitimately may be a cursed sports fan. I am sorry yall

THIS IS ALL MY FAULT

I was still defending him last year, albeit with the caveit in the back of my mind that if it happens again I'd withdraw myself from being invested in this team. Its not defensible at this point.... Rods entire gimmick is high effort forececk cycle cycle take random low danger shot rinse repeat.... as soon as you play a team with the size and skill to break out of the canes high pressure you get sh*tcanned. He doesnt adapt EVER its always the same 0-12 ECF and all of the second round losses we've suffered look the same as those finals. Then you get rod on the podium looking completly befuddled with zero answers and just saying "we've got to play better I've got no idea what's going on"

Is that throwing them under bus or rest of team? He is saying those two were our best players and that can’t be the case if we are going to win. Anyway, haven’t managed to see a single minute of this series and seems like I’m lucky. Losing is one thing, losing in this way, by this margin is unacceptable. Heads have to roll. But they won’t