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Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu! Man, after spending tons of time in Lord of the Rings Online's Moria, I can't wait to see it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@VarkingDude, I'm so jelly That's awesome!

I don't think Seattle lets him go. They will sign him to a short term, lucrative deal, and look for a high talent developmental QB later in the draft to develop. They are a fun watch, and he's a great story. I don't think there's that easy of an upgrade for Seattle over Geno.

That's exactly what I was thinking. He's a proven commodity running the ball, but his pass protection issues (showed up Sunday) are going to be an issue when the real games are on the line. I really like watching him hammer a defense, but let's not go crazy there.

My critique of the story was not so much for the lack of adaptation, but more for the pacing. It seemed as if very little happened each episode. And some bits like the "let's all fight the elf" are tired and silly. I don't care how good and magical you are, you aren't beating back 6-8 guys with sharp blades. I get it's a fun trope, but it really didn't feel great. I completely see the chess board thing. There's several cool stories (and tragic ones) that will happen in the near future. I hope we get some great payoff! BTW - Lady Desi, Sophia Nomvete, popped up in Wednesday on Netflix and I fanboied out! My wife was like "You are such a dork!" Yeah, the problem with the Hobbit films was that they were pre-produced by Guillermo del Toro. He had his own vision. Then he left the project, and it was up to Peter Jackson to take all the partially done things and make them work. Which is partially why it feels so disjointed. I hate that because the cast was exceptional, the post was fantastic, and though overstuffed, it was a really fun trip through some of the less explored areas of Middle Earth. I'm with you, I can still watch the Hobbit films, despite how much abuse they did to the OG text.

That's freaking cool @Varking! Congratulations on the wild and awesome experiences! On a related note: I will miss the guy who played Adar. He was great! My hope is that they do take some of the feedback from season 1, and improve the show. I mean, it's already just beautiful to look at, and the story is already there (Tolkien). I'm not saying they have the hew more closely to the books, but rather get back some some good character development and more personally impactful plots. It was just really inconsistent. I still loved the show despite it's flaws. It's just MORE Middle Earth and I can't get enough of it. I'm saving up my airline miles to get some Shire ABnB

I'm not sure. You have to go with the player you love. We don't know who our next HC is. Will Fitts survive? Those are pretty important questions. Regardless, if there's a QB you like, you move heaven and earth to get them. Look at how Mahomes and Allen were drafted. Trades to get them. So that's what I think should happen. Get the guy you want, you love, you want to build your franchise around no matter the cost. We know how expensive it is NOT to have a franchise guy who you can build your team around.

I'm going to say "I don't know!" There are four more games. I think Steve has done a great job despite being set up to fail. Like @TheWiz said, he FITS really well. I agree that's important. Steve Wilks has shown that he is a real NFL coach. He's taken whatever Matt Rhule put together and molded into a tough ass team (that's what Rhule always wanted) that's making a playoff run. Who would have thought that after that SF debacle? As much as I was on board for an offensive wunderkinder earlier, more and more I'm down for Wilks in 2023. Wilks has learned when and how he needs to be more hands on. Do you think McAdoo would be running these jumbo packages without Steve there telling him what he needs? Look up at Carolina North. They hired our defensive coordinator as HC, and they have one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL. So that's not terrible. Bill Belichick is considered one of the best HCs (and cheaters) of all time, was a defensive guy. Is there an Andy Reid/McVey/Shannanhan out there who can be the cornerstone for our offense for 10 years? At the end of the day, you need to find a coach. Some will bring those X and O's advantage, others will require their coordinators to do it. It's above my paygrade. While we are making a lot of progress, there is still a TON of work to do, starting with finding a HC and QB. No matter how good you are, you need that high level QB to be successful in the NFL.

I'm in the "good for Baker" camp. He was great here as a teammate, did everything he could to help out. The offensive system sucks. It was not suited to Baker at all. Last night, he did a LOT of play action, hitting the middle of the field on intermediate passes. That's his strength. McVay played to his strengths. Man, it's almost as if coaching is a major contributing factor to the success of a QB. Good for Baker. Hopefully he plays the Rams down in the draft and is able to feel redeemed as he moves to his next stop.

It's going to depend on our next coach. The athletic talent is tantalizing. Dude has all of the tools. Were he struggles related to a lack of talent and execution on the team or how much of that was on his own? I actually made an effort to watch some Florida ball this year for him specifically. I have no idea =P Like you can see the tools. Man, he's got some gifts! But I saw a bunch of times when he's throwing layups where he missed a dude by 10 feet. How much of that is on him versus the play or his teammate? That's what makes picking a QB hard. If we drafted him, I'd be excited for him and us. But again, I have no idea how it's going to go for him in the run up to the draft. Like most QBs, he'll be pushed up.

Y'all do realize that we can move in the draft to get a QB? Both KC and Buffalo traded up for their franchise guys. We can do that too. It's not the end of the world so long as you make the right decision. Ask former players how cool they are with the idea of tanking? How many of them, who have families to feed, are going to say "yeah, let me make it harder to earn money by playing badly or just not playing" so a 21 year old kid can come in and save they day all by themselves? This team is not that terrible. Sure, they have lots of areas to fix, including the QB this off season, but putting your entire franchise future on a top 10 pick is a bit much, even for the huddle. Some of y'all just need to chill out.

The market will correct itself. If Disney blows a bunch of money on shows that fail, that's their pocketbook. They have to be smart.

It's all going to depend on who the next HC is. If Sam plays really well, we win games, and he makes plays, then I have no problem with making him a backup. I also have no problem letting him go with everyone else and starting fresh. I just want to know who our coach is in 2023...

Just wow... I can absolutely live with Matt just admitting to being a bad NFL coach. It's fine. Not everyone is cut out to be a NFL coach. Maybe Matt is able to make Nebraska something again, or he'll get fired again. I was wishing him luck because he's not our coach anymore. But fug that. Trying to take credit for what's happening now, implying he got bamboozled...Yeah screw you Matt. He needs to shut up, accept responsibility for his own stupid mistakes. Learn from it and be a better man. Everything is a stupid chess piece for him. I feel so sorry for his family. Screw that guy. Right in the butt with a thousand 3" wood screws.

There's still a lot to go over when scouting these QBs. Right now, I have to ask "who is the gamer?" Who is the player who can make plays out of structure when your team needs you? Is there an alpha dog who can put a team on his back and will them to victory? I see Bryce Young....and no one else. But Young is also small which won't work out well for him when he starts getting flattened by 300lb NFL DLs. Stroud absolutely passes the eyeball test and the stat sheet test, but does he have the will to carry his team? Think about Jake Delhomme. Far from a good athlete, Jake elevated his team, put them on his back in the 4th quarter, and willed them to wins. Cam - how many times in the pros and college did Cam carry a team to victory? Then again, what do I know? I'm just an idiot with a keyboard. There's still a lot that of scouting that pros need to do, and then it's not up to me. So I'm all for the wins. They are more fun right now!

That Image...my GOD...the pain...the ROFLs...the WHHHHAAATTTT??? I don't think my eyes will ever be the same...

I love how wrapped up so many of us are about who to draft in November. Look, I get it, this is a crappy season with some real crap QB play. I understand how many have moved on to looking at the offseason. We don't know who our coach is in 2023. That is the biggest issue for the next 4 months. We need a new coach. I love what Wilks is doing making us competitive and interesting, but you know Tepper is going to want an offensive coach because that's what the NFL demands. Offensive coaches are able to maximize their QBs faster which leads to more ticket sales and sometimes, even a SB trophy! Who is it going to be? What do they like in a QB? As I think about the draft (i'm partially there), I think about how each of the top players compares to each other. Do we have a franchise altering player in the top 10? That's something we don't just know yet. Still lots of evaluating to do, especially post playoffs and bowl games. Then there is the dissection that happens after, with the risers and the fallers in the draft. It's along way to say that THE franchise QB is going to be in this draft. Now if the team feels like that, then they will move heaven and earth (and daft picks) for them. It's pointless to complain about the tank-a-thon because if a team wants a QB, they will go and get them.

I'm glad for the update. I have no ill wishes against Rhule. Sure, he sucked as an NFL coach, but he was trying his best. It's just not good enough. I do wish him the best of luck in the college ranks, and I hope he never thinks about coaching in the NFL again.

While I understand the worries of the draftniks, I think it's overblown. First off, we still don't know who the consensus "best" will be. Sure we have an idea, but the combine, prodays and interviews are still to come. We've often seen guys come out of no where because of these events. So who are the BESTS franchise altering guys? Is Stroud better than any QB over the last three years? Young for that matter? How does Anderson rate on the edge scale? Is he better than Burns? Let's look at Dane Brugler's midseason draft prospect rankings: https://theathletic.com/3751194/2022/11/02/nfl-draft-2023-rankings-midseason/ Who is going to push us further? May one of the QBs, which are again a hit or miss proposition/coaching issue. Do we need tackle? DL top 10 again? Another CB? If we end up with #3, I'd happily trade down into the 10-13 range. Collect a bounty and still snag a top flight player. Let's not pretend there are any sure shots in the NFL draft, or that we know all the answers today.

Foreman has the it factor right now. It’s going to depend on our new coach, their system, and the market. but he’s really fun to watch!

I'm a Panther Fan. I hope all of our players succeed. That said, I don't think it's in the cards for Matt Corral. I liked what I saw in camp, and I hate that he got hurt. But we're drafting a QB next year who will get the lion share of reps and attention. Matt is going to have to show the heck out. Will we run such a RPO heavy offense? It's almost as if the offense was set up so that Matt could come in and be comfortable quickly... Matt is just another victim of a horribly mismanaged team, sadly. I wish him the best because he seems like a good kid. I just am not sure it's going to be here for him.

A perfect transformation that every neckbearded internet nerd wrote 100x on their Tumblr page?

This is why we are really putting the cart in front of the shark here regarding 2023 QBs. The main reason is that our coach will dictate who we select. That's part of the gig. Buffalo struck gold with Allen. It's pretty simple. Allen has the tools, and the team and him put in the work to get better. It worked. There's a poo ton of money in the NFL trying to figure out how to get the next best QB. For every Josh Allen, there are several more highly regarded rookies who flame out in the NFL. Sometimes, teams and players just get lucky, they mesh and they win. We'll have to see who our new coach is. That's going to determine for the team who the next QB is. It's all fine to argue their college performances right now, but there is a lot of luck in finding a NFL QB. And an organization devoted to finding and helping them. That's something the Panthers do not have right now.

That's been an issue with most new fantasy shows that have these HUGE worlds and plots. I just am in love with Middle Earth, and the show helped me really scratch that itch. I'm really looking forward to seeing the follow up seasons, and the fall of Numenor. It would be kind of nice if there was a bit of a time jump that allowed the rebuilding of Peligar and re-establishment of the Numenorian colonies that would later allow Elendil to found Gondor and Arnor with something better than those magical ships they use.

Color me ready!