BrianS

We shouldn't look at this from the perspective of "Can Dalton be our guy?" That was never part of the equation. This was simply an opportunity to see if the rest of the puzzle was coming together. And we got an answer: It is. With even competent QB play, we look like we can compete. Great. Canales and his staff are pointing the ship in the right direction. That's not going to fix everything. Our defense is still nearly devoid of talent. Our receivers not named Johnson or Theilen are still learning. All we know at this point is that there is a glimmer of hope out there for us. That beats the heck out of the Rhule era.

That little bit right there is a very important piece of the puzzle. Because BY can't stand in, and is forced to move, it throws off the timing of the pass game. Timing is incredibly important in NFL offenses. Footwork is tied to the routes in order to make the timing and progression work.

I mean, if you want to talk about ripple effects, you have to go all the way back to Bridgewater. The entire wave of awful that overtook the franchise started when we (Tepper) ditched TB5 after one season. Remember when we thought TB5 couldn't throw deep? Good times my friends, good times.

It would be nice if we could unload him . . . but I don't have much hope.

I think we all expected Kuechly . . . but Kalil was nominated? He was a Panther all-timer for sure, but I didn't realize he had that sort of recognition league wide.

I also wouldn't mind seeing Plummer get a couple games. I know. Preseason. Against backups. But he did show improvement. If he even turns into a serviceable backup, that would be amazing. That list of FA's is bad. Like. Real bad. Dalton might be the best of them, unless Darnold has figured it out after hanging out with Kyle Shanahan and Kevin O'Connell.

This is worse. We moved on very quickly from Clausen. It was "Oh, he bad." And then there was Cam.

Alex Smith is about as close as you'll get.

Of course. Bryce needs to start until we have the number one pick next year in the bag. Nothing else makes sense.

Yes, that was one terrible play. Yes, it's hard to look at it and think "What if . . . "? However, that game turned much earlier. It was the Cotchery catch where the game turned. That one play and call completely and almost irreversibly changed the entire game.

And since apparently some of the apologists have forgotten . . . this is EXACTLY what you SHOULD expect from a number one overall draft pick of a "franchise" QB. You should look at the field and go "Yea, I see where this is going. We're going to have a chance in every game." Go watch Cam's first season again.

For me Kuechly, Davis, Beason, Morgan, Barrow and Mills were all CLEARLY better LB'ers for the Panthers than Shaq. It's very hard to get excited about a guy who at max is the seventh best LB in team history. Who is the seventh best QB in team history? The seventh best WR? The seventh best CB? He's been a starter for his whole career in the NFL, and would have been so at any team in the league. He's been a good ambassador for the team. Never causing trouble, never being a distraction. He just doesn't rise to the level of other players at the position in our past.

It already has. You can't pull a surprise anymore, you have to announce you are doing it and you can only do it in the 4th quarter if you are trailing.

Honestly, the results are the results. Largely unimportant, though yes it was nice to see us score a TD. What is more encouraging is watching BY's mechanics. His feet are showing urgency in the drop now, and he hits the top of the drop and is lined up to throw. He's a little choppy at times, and toesy (for obvious reasons), but his mechanics are quite different. And it shows. He's got a much quicker trigger now and can put the ball where it needs to be. The offense around him also looks different. Cohesive. Intentional. Professional. Will this equal success? I don't know. He's got a large hill to climb to live up to what we paid for him. However, he has a platform to build on. He has a chance.

Numbers aren't what we need to measure. Bryce needs to look like a franchise QB. He needs to consistently make the plays that are there to be made, and then a few times a game, he needs to make a "WOW!" play. The stats and numbers will follow if he does that.

Fanfest at Clemson is dumb. Fanfest on Thursday is dumb. Fanfest in Clemson on Thursday can only be double dumb.

Oh, listen I get that. My wife taught for 15 years in public schools. I'm not saying 250k is nothing for the average person. But in terms of NFL contracts and salary caps, 250k is less than a drop in the bucket.

Coker's contract is only 250k guaranteed. To earn the rest he has to make the team. It's not all that.

We are the most miserable lot in the entire league! https://www.wcnc.com/article/sports/nfl/panthers/fans-unhappiest-in-nfl-survey-finds/275-a49ed42b-ac87-4743-b26a-b866f0f0b37b?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2FbKBVg4wK2RlGaBY-YpLzbA8jeufuZRro6WCRanijJDnunCkGOSXO9U8_aem_s9F8sJwwe_1hNwP7ee4H6g Not saying it isn't justified, but damn.

FWIW: I saw a stat over the offseason that showed Mingo had the most uncatchable balls in the NFL thrown his way. I'm definitely not ready to write him off just yet.

Honestly, when draft picks fail it's almost never for athletic reasons. If you get drafted, you have the athletic talent. It's all those other things that can't be measured which cause failure. I wish the guy the best. There are certainly those rare players who finally figure it out. If we just get a rotational option out of this guy, that's a win for us.

It's a more realistic take than most. He was far more honest about our defense last year than most pundits.

Not sure if anyone else caught it, but in the section where the coaches and scouts were talking about what they wanted in an OLB, there was a point where someone said that they needed guys who could press the edge and finish by getting the guy to the ground. I couldn't help but think that some subtle frustration with Burns may have come out right there.

Incorrect. TB5 vs BY9 is a push at best. They are effectively the same player. Here is BY: Here is TB (Carolina year): So yea, BY had slightly more intended air yards per attempt (tried a touch more to go downfield). However, he completed far less downfield than TB5 (fewer completed air yards per attempt). Effectively, BY tried more, but TB was more effective.

Actually, he didn't throw any real deep balls in his pro day. I think the longest I remember seeing was about 45 yards in the air. Not sure how we could see Stroud, Richardson and Levis in the same week we saw Bryce and conclude that his arm was anything but the 4th best in the class.