KSpan

Did you even read what he wrote? All CRA is saying here is that neither Form an nor Hubbard have all-around skillsets like CMC, and that we saw last year how Abdullah provided the playstyle most similar to CMC because he could do both. As such, getting someone like that who isn't one-dimensional would be ideal. It's a valid thought if this offense shakes out like it's appearing it may do and there is no real negativity or complaining anywhere in that post.

Underthrew the route by a solid 7-10 yards, but still a nice play.

This is honestly one of the worst takes I've ever seen on this board, and there have been some doozies over the years. Playing pretend for a moment, even if it was somehow the worst circumstances eVeRrrrrrr, it might've been easier to navigate if he had some actual coaches with NFL experience to support under such hardship... instead, Rhule brought in his college lackeys and proceeded to fall flat on his face. That is not one's fault but his and Tepper's arrogant selves. Rhule gets zero benefit of any doubt at this point. Dude is a straight up college-poser hack until his team produces consistently, and even if it happens now it will be impossible to know how much is him improving and how much is the NFL coaching he finally brought on board. As a hint though, he's done jack crap without it, so improvement with it makes one wonder what Rhule himself actually brings to the table.

A lot of guys you're claiming Ron and Fox started with were brought in for their respective first seasons as well, so what does it matter who 'brought them in'? Bottom line is Rhule had talent in 2020 and more in 2021 and did jack with it; he was far from 'having no talent'. Ron brought in talent too, so if anything that weakens your point because Ron brought in actual talent while Rhule brought in ex-Baylor and Temple players along with a milquetoast QB based on his poor understanding of how the NFL works. If you want to argue that a QB makes a big difference then fine, though the Teddy and Sam situations underscore his lack of understanding of NFL booth all and strategy, but claiming that Rhule had little to no talent is flat out incorrect. You could also argue that his 2021 roster really wasn't that much better than 2020 and that a lot of the moves share credit with Fitterer. Rhule has nothing definitive to hang his hat on that is a clear contribution from him, especially not the coaching and strategy (his primary job).

Rhule had no talent, eh? CMC, DJ, Robbie, Samuel, Moton, Teddy (I'm no fan but he played better than Sam for sure), Burns, Brown, Chinn... it was more talent than Ron had in 2019 and, if coaching was indeed the issue, Rhule would have gotten them to better than the same record. 2021 had a full year under their belts as coaches and Rhule-led moves and ended up regressing heavily throughout the season. If you think Rhule isn't/wasn't a major issue, I don't know how you arrive at that conclusion. As I've said in other threads, if the team improves this year after a complete overhaul of the coaching staff and Fitterer having more influence in FA and the draft (admittedly a bit of speculation, but the offseason has sure been different this year vs the last 2 where Rhule was presented as the lead horse), the question is what does Rhule actually bring to the table relative to all those non-Rhule improvements? I bet you it's not much.

I'd say that the 2020 defense was downright poor overall, and last year's defense was way overhyped based on their performance feasting on bottom-tier teams in the first weeks. Once the offense was figured out (a Rhule specialty) and the opposition discovered that Carolina had no solution for the off-tackle runs, the average to below-average reality of the defense became clear. There's some definitive talent there abut they need to prove the start of 2021 wasn't a fluke by doing it consistently against some quality competition. With that said, an offensive upgrade can go a long way toward making even a mediocre defense like Carolina's look much better, like we saw in early 2021. Maybe this year's offense will pitch in. To the question posed by the thread topic though, I think pass rush trumps all (a la 2013). A killer secondary is never a bad thing though and can't hurt, but no one can cover receivers forever if there is no consistent pressure on the QB.

But did he play basketball though?

Yeah man, but they drafted Fletch. ...

The point still stands that RR showed marked improvement with what he had coming into Year 1 vs his predecessor, and he deserves some credit for that even if it was a matter of Fox underachieving. Rhule had plenty of weapons coming in plus brought in Anderson and Bridgewater as his guys and still managed the same record as an outgoing RR. It's not a knock on RR that he chose Cam and Rhule chose Brown instead of Becton, Wirfs, or any number of the other 1st rounders that perhaps could have made a bigger difference (Brown had a solid rookie season though, so not really knocking him). You're right that it's difficult to compare though, and I'd say the bigger condemnation is that Rhule's teams have been completely figured out and faltered down the stretch each season. That's my biggest issue with him and what he absolutely has to show this year IMO, that he can strategize and compete at an NFL level.

He very clearly stated that Fox inherited Smitty the returner, not Ron, and Rhule got DJ (not 89-level, but still very good), had Samuel, and signed Anderson. Rhule had plenty and couldn't yield results or show improvement in year 2, or year 1 for that matter. Bottom line is that Rhule's here for year 3 and we're all on this ride along with him. However, unlike Capers, Fox, and Rivera (to a lesser degree IMO) he has shown zilch to warrant any credibility, regressed heavily on the field in his second year even if the winning percentage only went down slightly, and deserves the benefits of no doubt. Skepticism towards his ability as an NFL coach and strategist are backed completely by the team's (lack of) performance under him to date and he has a ton to prove.

He said it takes 5 years to build a winner, maybe 6. This is just a sad attempt at managing expectations after his flop with Rhule but IMO doesn't necessarily mean Rhule himself is guaranteed to get that long.

He was healthy for 3 and an absolute workhorse for 2 of those, no disagreement there. Unfortunately though dude's missed 23+ of 33 potential games the past 2 seasons with nagging soft tissue injuries. I want to believe he'll be healthy again and don't think Carolina should really limit him at all to start the season but it is what it is at this point.

As if Rhule would be willing to give up the hope of having CMC on the field... Anti-Rhule bias aside, the OL improvements and QB choice would really make CMC deadly if he remains healthy. A huge if but, depending on the offer, he's a great player to have.

Exactly. Luke was great at sifting through trash but wasn't strong in taking on direct blocks so needed big shielding up front to be at his best (true for many LBs of course). Ray could take on linemen and shed with the best of them, enabling the DL to do some other things besides just occupy blockers. No right or wrong IMO, just a matter of what scheme is being run. I don't think Luke would have been as effective in a 3-4 and Ray's uniqueness fades a bit in a 4-3.

Bunch of stuff he didn't do at the combine, if I remember correctly.

You mean like when Carolina shut out the Falcons and Shanahan's offense 38-0 in 2015, held his offense to 20 and 13 in '11 and '12 when he was OC in Washington, held his Browns offense to 13 in 2014, and held his 49ers to 3 in 2017, winning all of these games?

Reminds me of "Corey is a nice young man but Philly catches the ball" Philly Brown back in 2015.

That Panthers Confidential stuff is too neutered, or at least really turned that way last year. Maybe they'll take a different tact this year but last year's stuff was not very interesting.

Barring a major leap in Wilson's play, MLB is an incremental upgrade and I'm not sure if they've solved the 5/6 hole weakness off-tackle where teams ate Carolina alive last year. There was promise there but there were major weaknesses too, and the biggest defensive gain may be offensive improvement. Has that occurred is the real question IMO.

Gotta get those sweet concert dollars.

Rashawn Slater and his short arms say hello... dumbass Rhule.

Finished it over the course of 3 or so nights and thought it was fine. I like the angle they took overall and think I would have enjoyed the movie a little more had I watched it in one sitting instead of splitting it up, but that is what it is. Catwoman's social commentary-esque rant towards the end felt pretty out of place and forced given the rest of the story. That batsuit is also apparently quite bulletproof.

Pretty clear that these types of comments refer to speaking/appearing in his professional capacity as a representative of the Panthers, as he did many times in prior offseasons but as Fitterer has done near-exclusively this offseason. Rhule sure had no problem with it previously. And Kenny Chesney... lolz.

Not to date, no.

I didn't say that Rhule was the only one who failed, as he and Tepper have both sucked hard during their respective tenures, but Dupes amount of power puts him first and foremost in line for blame. Maybe it's some newfound humility but unto it shows on the field, his dumbassery and inept NFL performance to date precedes him and he gets little to no benefit of any doubt.