Khyber53

Been trying to say Jones was going to be one of the top QBs from this batch, possibly the best. Have been saying we'd grab him if he was still there at 8. But hey, what do I know?

Actually, after today's moves, there's a lot of speculation that Jones won't be there when we pick. He may not make it past #3.

I think we'll grab Mac Jones at 8, but there's a chance that with the serious run on QBs in the top 10, we may see some trades that pushes even more than four QBs off the boards before we get there. If so, look for us to take either LT or Micah Parsons in hopes of swinging back for a second round QB pick. I think we're very likely to see teams like New Orleans, Denver and even maybe Tampa Bay make some aggressive moves to get QBs. Detroit and maybe even Philadelphia could make picks for QBs considering their tenuous situations there. Even Miami could stay put and snag a QB. It could be just that crazy and leave our brass with some selections that most likely wouldn't be on the board this late.

Maybe, but Seattle let him go, and that makes me wonder. Our other DT/DE pick-up from the Rams makes more sense as an impact player. He looks like he was on the upswing of his career and has a hunger to make himself a starter. Heck, we just need some run stuffers on that line. Crazily, we were more effective at preventing first down yardage gains versus the pass than against the run last season. And that's after we'd been told how bad our pass defense was going to be. And statistically, we were one of the worst teams in the league when it even came to getting other teams to third down, much less preventing them from converting. That defense was soft.

You've got it.

It goes fast and we need to have some in reserve because there will be some vets available after the draft when we have a better idea of needs to fill. And there's always at least one surprise vet that suddenly finds themselves looking at a trade possibility. It's a good idea to have some spending money on hand even into training camp.

Sometimes the greatest blessings are definitely the things you didn't get.

It really comes down to the money. This isn't a good market for players looking for big pay days. And we don't have a whole lot of spendable cash left.

We ascribe a lot to Tepper based only minimally on what he has actually said or done, both good and bad. If we just look at what has been accomplished here since he took over... ...well, there's not a lot more winning. He did, though, pick up the team when it was pretty down and out, promising a rise to greatness (or at least respectability). We're a few years in now and I think we need to start seeing some results this season. Then again, it's not like we can call for him to get fired. He owns the whole darned thing.

Honestly, they've got a lot to prove that we can put together a good defense, much less a great one. First year, coaching gets a pass. Second year, we need to see a defensive identity emerge, something besides "do what you want to but leave us alone!" We were one of the worst defenses in the league last season with our stats being just a bit polished by that shut out of a broken down and dejected Detroit squad.

Talk about team ownership just phoning it in. Will their mascot just be a soccer player?

Yeah, and I'd still be Meh until I saw how it played out. Stafford is always talked about as a good QB stuck on a bad team, but I think his record points to the distinct possibility that he isn't a good enough QB to make a bad team into a good one.

What a guy! Cheered for him every time he got on the field. I hope he creates havoc in the AFCEast. And I hope he comes back to make a home in the Carolinas, he's a good, good guy.

I'm still at Meh. What I'm seeing hasn't been big names and that's not necessarily a bad thing. I am seeing us bring in some folks that have some promise and a lot of potential but I realize that doesn't always pan out, especially when they've had injuries. The pick ups are showing me that there's some serious research being done, hopefully with an eye toward specific needs of Rhule, but we won't see how good it is until the season gets going. What I do strongly like is that we haven't seen Fitterer go out there and feel it is necessary to go big game hunting to make his mark here and mark his territory. At least unless he goes crazy and offers everything to Houston for a QB who may not be allowed to play this coming season. The draft is going to tell us a lot about his priorities, style and ideas of what values are. If he could be as good as Hurney with the first rounders, and then be steady for the rest of the rounds, he'll be a winner.

The dude wins games. Something we could stand to do.

Welcome to the Panthers. It ain't Hollywood...

Honestly, I feel that run defense is such a physical part of the game that you can see teams that have people looking towards free agency have worse run defenses. A tackle in the run game doesn't build you big stats, doesn't usually make the highlight reel, it's just the hard work/getting dirty part of the game. And let's face it, anyone looking to extend their career would rather bring down a QB or a WR than a RB moving at full steam. There's more to it, but teams that go soft against the run are usually teams that aren't going anywhere. I think we saw that majorly with the Panthers in Rivera's last two seasons and some carried over into this past season for us. KK Short gave up on run defense (not just the tackling but the hard work vs the o-line on run plays) and Tahir Whitehead showed absolutely no desire to risk future pay checks in an effort to lay the lumber to a running back or full back. I think as we see those guys leave, they also take with them the effects of their lack of commitment. Coaching can hopefully take over and we can become a more hardnosed defensive group. Brown has the looks of it and Chinn certainly appears ready for contact. Shaq is a willing tackler but he's been called on so much too help with our coverage teams he hasn't been the factor in run defense that he should have been. It all comes down to commitment and toughness. If you can't get that from your front 7, then you aren't going to get much at all.

You really don't understand football do you?

Me, too, but what are you gonna do? Can't exactly put a non-compete clause into their contracts. I just wish him well, but that he has a tough day twice a season against us.

Of course everyone chirps in about CMC last season. He had injuries, we brought him back, he was reinjured. There was no benefit to the team in that, there never was supposed to be. He was injured. He came back and was utilized before getting reinjured again. He wasn't sat so we would lose games, as is evidenced by the fact we were still trying to win games (Washington anyone?).

There's a plentitude of Alabama players that could be very good in the NFL in this crop, beyond WR and QB. We should have the entire staff down there including Sir Purr and Lenny the Section C beer vendor.

Ummm, you don't pay players to not be utilized to their fullest. The game itself runs all the players into the ground.

He came in and made the most of his opportunity (something he never really got anywhere else). Now, after making some waves, he's hopefully getting his best contract ever. Good for him and best of the world to the guy.

No, it's way, way down the list. QB, offensive line, DB, Safety, MLB, TE are all in front of WR on this list right now. Maybe a late round WR for depth and attempting to mine a gem, but there's really not a good reason to skip on those other things.

I agree, but as he said in the video... Can a team find the QB's flaw and correct it before opposing DCs find that flaw and exploit it. That little hitch might only add half a second to a QBs release time, but that make a monstrous opportunity for the defense. Do we have a QB coach who can fix that kind of flaw? Can he actually spot and assess flaws, much less correct them. Will the QB himself be willing to put in the time to correct something, because it is not an overnight fix?