KSpan

Hardman is in no way, shape, or form a #1 or even #2 receiver. There is a reason KC is letting him test the market and that is because he is a straight speed guy that brings nothing else to the table. Good Ginn-type (without Cam magic) player if you have the luxury of that in your offense, but has shown nothing more eve with Reid.

Way too deep of a hole to dig out so easily, but it is much more promising than the 2020 offseason.

Not sure about Hopkins but Cooks is expensive. If the Texans ate some of it then perhaps.

Right, and that's my (joking) point. Dude's actual role on the team to fly down the field and hit people, not to catch passes.

In all reality, Hankton was an SS that they lined up at WR in times of desperation. Doesn't count.

That was exactly my thought after they traded DJ. Would be a lot of money for 2023 but, while painful, not unpalatable if they wanted to move on for 2024. Cooks can also go deep and run slot-type routes.

Jesus, people will complain about anything.

Any lineman looks good when only lined up against LBs and DBs.

I don't know about traded but he is definitely miscast in a base 3-4. I don't know how anyone looks at that tape of his rookie year and thinks to play him in center field or as a base 3-4 LB. It's just weird how mismanaged he has been.

Weakside ILB in a 3-4 under-type defense might work, but Chinn needs to be in space and I don't know what OLB they'd line up over the weakside tackle. Maybe Burns? Definitely not Luvu. Seems a waste but they won't be in this base front much.

Guys like Coleman and Harris have had some flash-in-the-pan years, but Bell is legitimately the best safety Carolina has had since Minter retired. That is how poor the safety position has been for this franchise.

Teammates assaulted by Steve Smith: 3. Teammates assaulted by Andre Johnson: 0. I'm not even saying this explicitly factors in, simply saying that there can be much more in play than just stats. Also, I live in KC, a market much smaller than Charlotte, and the Chiefs were irrelevant until Reid and then Mahomes started winning. Now, they win and get lots of attention regardless despite the market size. And how Carolina got lots of attention here in 2005, 2008, 2013, and then 2015-2017 when they were actually doing something interesting. Weird, right? In your own words, stop being dumb.

“If Carolina doesn’t pick the right quarterback, the trade’s a disaster” Brilliant analysis right there.

Yup, total media bias in favor of the hugely successful Houston market. It's the only possible answer and has nothing to do with factors such as their numbers being similar (Steve has more TDs and playoff games to his credit) or Steve being a much more polarizing player for a good portion of his career. None at all. I think Smith deserves to get in over a guy like Johnson but to cry 'Carolina media bias' is lame.

Eww. I like Burns but he has not shown to be anywhere near worth that much.

Luke was routinely regarded as the best MLB in football, earning DPOY honors twice when he was playing and of course Steve would have gotten more attention if he played in a bigger market, just like literally any other player, and doesn't imply a bias against Carolina specifically. Your own bias is strong here with those two.

Steve and Luke get a ton of credit and are/were always highly regarded, so while I don't disagree with the general point your inclusion of those two undercuts it. Also, Carolina has sucked in a boring way (nothing like the Jags/Meyer circus, Hue in Cleveland, etc) while DJ has been in the league and crappy teams don't tend to get attention. Nothing really new there.

No, it doesn't have to be that black and white when there could also be multiple picks on the table that are basically free money and change the balance of the equation. Neither of our opinions are wrong or anything more than speculation, but trading to 2 is absolutely a viable and possibly advantageous course of action.

That's the whole point of reading back, that you're still assured of getting a player you want and/or value as much as any other. We have no idea what the FO really wants to do and as such can only speculate, but the notion that they value more than one QB the same and would cash in on it if they could is perfectly logical.

Nah, you could also trade to #1 if there is more than one QB you like and the guys in #2 and/#3 (if applicable) aren't trading. Then you hold your cards close and trade down to get a guy you're just as happy with while recovering draft capital. Not saying that's the story, but I could definitely see it. Shrewd move overall.

I live in KC and was on the fence but with #1, feels like I have to roll up in my minty white Mills #51.

Exactly. It puts them fully in the driver's seat. Not a bad place to be.