ellis

We are transitioning to the iHeartRadio interface for podcasts and audio cuts. Apparently, it takes about five days to work into the system. My apologies if there are any audio difficulties.

18 minutes ago, ellis said:

There’s definitely some form of a plan here. When you have a seven-year contract, you are afforded an opportunity to build your roster in phases. They drafted heavy, and well, defensively in 2020. They balanced that out in 2021, while adding some great value pieces in FA to the defense (Fox, Reddick, Luvu, Bouye.) Henderson is a long-term project, could be a steal. Pretty low risk. Gilmore is the type of move you make when you think you’re ready elevate. But still at a fairly low cost. 

Speaking of Twitter, here’s one account you should follow: @TheHonestNFL. 

Former scout, been around the league for a while, knows Rhule. He’s a well-connected guy, and has been a great contact for me in terms of scheme, concepts, evals, etc.

 

 

We discussed Elflein, and his future: 

The line’s identity isn’t fully baked yet. By year 3, that’s the idea. 

Always good to stop by the huddle. My son’s birthday is the same day as the New England game, so let me know if y’all are out there tailgating. Would love to say hi.  

Fascinating stretch of games coming up. Grab a handful of Q’s before Thanksgiving, and climb into December with a shot at the playoffs. That’s growth: competing in meaningful games down the stretch, against very good teams, is a huge deal. Hoping they reached that landmark with a shot at it. 

Looking forward to chatting with you guys throughout the process.

There’s definitely some form of a plan here. When you have a seven-year contract, you are afforded an opportunity to build your roster in phases. They drafted heavy, and well, defensively in 2020. They balanced that out in 2021, while adding some great value pieces in FA to the defense (Fox, Reddick, Luvu, Bouye.) Henderson is a long-term project, could be a steal. Pretty low risk. Gilmore is the type of move you make when you think you’re ready elevate. But still at a fairly low cost. 

Speaking of Twitter, here’s one account you should follow: @TheHonestNFL. 

Former scout, been around the league for a while, knows Rhule. He’s a well-connected guy, and has been a great contact for me in terms of scheme, concepts, evals, etc.

Oh, and: 
HAPPY VIKINGS WEEK. 
 

Whew. Yea. 

So, with that out of the way, let’s look at the athletic testing/measurables charts for a good chunk Carolina’s current OL group.  

Data courtesy of mockdraftable.com

6 hours ago, Moo Daeng said:

I think some of these "analysts" are trying too hard to make drama or over complicate things. They signed some guys who haven't worked out. It's obvious now. They need things to Tweet about over and over again well past the point it's ground breaking to point out the deficiencies of the free agents. I just don't know how long you can beat a horse for tweets. We'll  find out.

“Analysts”. Okey dokey. 

I don’t pretend to assume that you’re talking about me—perhaps you are considering the initial video here. 

So, let’s just go ahead and knock this out, just in case this is about my work.

I don’t aim for drama. I don’t like drama. It’s a waste of time. So, there’s that.  

I do put a lot of detail and time into what I do, and if the rhythm/cadence of the tweets turns you off, that’s totally fair. It’s a lot. I get it. 

Making assumptions about my intentions, none of which come close to the truth, isn’t great. Clicks. Likes. All that nonsense. It’s not who I am, it’s not what we do. I rarely hear that critique, because people know I’m not about that.

I actively ask people to simply unfollow me, kindly, if they don’t like what we do. I don’t go around blocking people. I’m not malicious in my critiques.

We have a wide reach, but I don’t obsess over that. In fact, if you talk to some of the people close to me in this business, I think you’ll learn that I’m quite the opposite of what you may think. I’m losing likes and clicks by not following a certain formula that guarantees cheap hits. That would be disingenuous, another thing that I can say that I am not. 

I see this critique from time to time, not just from you, and I just thought I would take a minute to address it.

My account is what it is, it’s not for everybody, but there is a good deal of value in what we do. It’s honest and detailed, so I will always take time to address any perceived slight towards my approach in providing analysis. 

Same goes for others out there doing good work. Again, as this has nothing to do with me, and it turns out I’m a complete narcissist, there’s one thing you can put on your bulletin board right there. But, never hurts to address it, just in case.

Anyway, I hope you have a nice night, and enjoy the season. I’m always around to chat on Twitter, if you can stomach it. Rough waters in them seas these days. 

Seems like old times. 

Here’s a similar look at the offense. 

Elflein is a solid run game guard. But, he is really bad right now in traditional pass sets. Was last yr, too. Sam looks poised. 

Panthers have protected the following PS players for week one: 

Oh well, let’s just get to week one. 

Plenty of positives, particularly early on defensively.

This play was just bad. 

1 hour ago, TheSpecialJuan said:

John, this was terrific, thoroughly enjoyed it 

Much appreciated! 

1 hour ago, CPsinceDay1 said:

Enjoyed the listen, especially around the 41:10 mark, things got quite interesting, some strong feelings there for a certain QB

Appreciate you listening. I have tried to be open minded about Will’s development, and it’s certainly nothing personal. I covered his first camp. There was a considerable gap between Allen and Grier that summer, in terms of consistency.

He’s efficient, and accurate. I still think some of his fundamentals break down a little bit with moderate pocket pressure. Walker has continued to improve, and has great timing on vertical shots. Still has a tendency to take some gambles, and that’s something to work on. That’s a good foundation to work from with a young quarterback, IMO. Coachable guy w/ tremendous athletic traits. 

Will was so good at West Virginia, and the system was perfect for him. Teammates really like him, and again, he has nice accuracy and good timing on intermediate-level throws. I just don’t see next-level development happening. I get the sense this staff, for most part, prefers PJ to Will. 

Was a pleasure to chronicle camp this year from Wofford. We took some time to review some of the highlights from a spirited camp, and plenty of details from their final day w/ the Ravens. 

(Pardon the audio, I was on the road for the first segment.)

Thanks for allowing me to share, and I hope you guys enjoy! 

34 minutes ago, HarbingersDad said:

Hey John, quick question for you. I’m pretty interested in the X’s and O’s of football, but I’ve never heard of a 3-3-3 look. I thought it might be because only 9 players were on the field, but I counted 10 when I rewatched the video. Is 3-3-3 a variation of a 3-3-5 and terminology used by Snow and the panthers? 

The 3/3/3 references 3DL, 3LB, 3 SAF. I know, it’s a little confusing. I probably should’ve clarified that. Here’s a great article talking about Phil’s defensive structure, including some tidbits about this scheme. This is more of a sub package look, not base. (Base has typically been a 43 under, with Reddick as the strong side backer off the ball, Burns as the “LEO”—edge player on ball. Snow ran this as his base in college, with a lot of C1/C3. Seattle has been running this base alignment for years.)

https://matchquarters.com/tag/phil-snow/

5 minutes ago, PortCityPanther said:

@ellis Big fan of the show, keep it up!

Always evolving, but we try to keep it simple and coherent. Some amazing guests coming up in September. Appreciate your support!

10 hours ago, Moo Daeng said:

The Twitter fights and player bashing is just a major turn off from what once seemed to be a professional approach.

It's easy content but it's not productive.

Again, I don’t recall an unusually high volume of “player bashing” tweets? Teddy is a old bit we run out, and it’s tired—probably just time to move off it, I agree. 
 

We will try to put some extra emphasis on the content most people come to my page for, which is Panthers throwback clips, the podcast w/guests, and film analysis on the 2021 Panthers. 
….speaking of which…let’s look at today

9 hours ago, frankw said:

As far as criticism of mgmt that's a bit of a slippery slope. If you want content slanted toward unanimous praise you may as well stick with the official Panthers social media pages.

Certainly appreciate your understanding of this concept. We’ve said good things about Tep/Rhule/Scott/Dan Morgan, plenty of them. I just try to be fair, which involves being direct/critical as warranted. 

Tep has made a lot of big decisions over the last couple of years, and I think fans have every right to either say “just trust it” and stay the course, just as they can examine those moves with some level of scrutiny. 

I’m CERTAINLY not here to instruct fans on how to fan. 

10 hours ago, Moo Daeng said:

ellis, love you man. I look at your stuff multiple times a day. I don't have a Twitter account and never intend to.

Some honest constructive criticism. If your account is going to put a noticeable emphasis on making light of and criticizing athletes then you are volunteering yourself for the same. 

Media is not above criticism when they engage in it daily.

I am NEVER above criticism. And I don’t make it a habit of making light of going after players. Teddy was a bad signing, and that’s on people other than Teddy. I can’t think of too many other players I’ve been hard on? I’ve actually built some fun relationships with many of the former and current guys here (Donnalley, Foster, Stewart, McClover, Luther Broughton, Jermaine Carter, CMC follows and likes our stuff). I actually spend more time cultivating and maintaining those relationships than I ever have being relentlessly unfair to anyone. It’s led me to a good place with respect to developing a somewhat small, but well respected circle of sources from around league. 

I do appreciate your perspective. Teddy’s not here, and I think it’s fair to let it go. Will do. 

9 hours ago, Moo Daeng said:

Anything possible to bring negative light on Bridgewater while getting upset with Newton criticism .  That's the long standing one. Just seems time to let it go. Or at least don't be angry at criticism you've opened yourself up to by engaging in that realm.

I suppose this is just Twitter and I should move on too.

I’m a radio guy, at my core, so we run bits into the ground. It’s almost a parody of itself at this point. We spend far less time discussing former Panthers QB’s than we do providing film/clips/analysis on the current roster. 

I will never agree with everything any regime does. I don’t think I’ve been particularly unfair to Rhule or anyone else. I praised Scott Fitterer for a masterful work during the draft, re: riding down the board and still getting good players. 

Cam was great here. Teddy felt overpaid from day one. Neither would be ideal here now. So, whenever I say it’s a big year for Matt and Sam, I’m looking at progression and a positive lean to playoff-readiness. 

I do value the opinions here. I don’t think we are a toxic place for Panthers content, but yea, if you catch a thread of Teddy talk you’ll either say “spot on” or “ugh”. 

That topic makes up a tiny share of our content, minuscule to be honest. 

Looking forward to the season! Appreciate y’all.