BrianS

So he's going for laughingstock or amazing success.  Got it.

Our system is actually pretty friendly to a rookie QB.  Good RB.  Lots of checkdown options.  High YAC receivers.

I'd rather find the long term solution to our problem than keep stringing "bridge" QB's through the organization.  Make no mistake, that's all Stafford would be.  YES.  He would make us better.  But when you really need a long term solution at QB, that's actually NOT a good thing.

This draft class currently has the appearance of a VERY strong class at QB.  We have a relatively high pick.  Get a QB.  Let TB5 do his thing until the staff feels like our guy is ready than throw him in.  If he fails, try again.

32 minutes ago, Zod said:

He can build 12 stadiums for all I care. I don't like multimillionaires to ask for our tax money to do it though.

I do agree with this, but I just worry that if our city council decides to take that stance the elected officials in upstate South Carolina won't hesitate to give the help Tepper asks for.  It's a very difficult situation for them.  Do you want to be the ones in charge when the Panthers move to Rock Hill?  Yikes.

I suspect Tepper wants to turn BoA into a soccer / concert stadium and build a new stadium for the Panthers.  BoA is a great stadium, no doubt, but it seems clear that our front office wants to build.

1 hour ago, AU-panther said:

Everyone loves to point out that a lot of QBs in the first don't work out but you also need to look at all of the QBs drafted in rounds 2-7 and see how many times they work out.

The first round doesn't guarantee you that you are going to right about the QB you draft but drafting one after the first almost guarantees you are going to be wrong.

I did this math a while back.

Round 1 QB's generally make it about 50% of the time (48% to be exact) over the last 25 years.

Round 2-7 QB's generally make it about 11% of the time over the last 25 years.

12 minutes ago, kungfoodude said:

Mitch Trubisky - Not a great scenario up in Chicago for QB's. Talented gunslinger with the classic boneheaded play syndrome. I'd be down to take a flier on him for a cheap deal. 

 

This guy here . . . he might not be as bad as we're led to believe.  He does kinda have a reputation as a gunslinger, but I'm not sure it's deserved.  His INT% rate is 2.3 for his career . . . while career "game manager" Alex Smith is at 2.1 and Checkdown Teddy is at . . . 2.3.  Completion % is at 64% . . . vs 63 and 66.

I would be very curious to see someone like that play in our system.  Just not sure how we make that work, nor would I want to lose our #1 to find out.

51 minutes ago, MHS831 said:

No, but if you sign the contract, you better play up to it.  His cap number doubles from last year to this year.  He has $16m guaranteed. 
A post June 1 cut saves the team $10m.

Throw in KK, who has a post June 1 cut figure of $14.5m.

Bridgewater is on the payroll either way through this season.

The nearly $25 million you would save by cutting KK and Shaq is not available during this free agency period, obviously.

Paradis could save us $8.5m in a post June 1 cut.

I say cut KK post June 1, and if anyone in camp comes close to Paradis and Thompson, cut them as well.  If we cut the three post June 1, then TB after this season, we could enter 2022 down $55m. 

Pretty sure you can only designate two for post-June 1.  The third you would have to wait until it's actually June.

I don't expect Shaq to get cut, either designated or in reality to June 1.  Shaq is solid, just not outstanding.  I honestly don't expect Paradis to get cut either.  Paradis was much better this year, but still average. 

While both have relatively high numbers, the chance that you will find a replacement of like value for what you SAVE is not very good.

Our cap isn't wonderful, but it's improving.  We only have about 30 players who would have ongoing cap ramifications if cut, out of 58 players under contract.  This coming season looks like the last one of "The Purge".

Luke is definitely in.  The Hall would lose all credibility if he was snubbed.  He's the GOAT.  End of story.  He was the best defender in the league every year he played, not only for his production, but for the way he made players around him better.

2 minutes ago, AU-panther said:

I would disagree.  When he came out some of the so called experts said he could have been one of the better WRs in the draft.

I don't see any reason he couldn't be one of the better slot receivers in the league if he played it full time.

I'm not advocating for him to switching to receiver full time but I do think he needs to be used as a matchup weapon in the passing game.  Isolate him on LBs and let him run WR type of routes, not just check downs and wheels.

That's what I was thinking, I just didn't say it as well.  Not that he should transition to slot completely, just that we should consider forcing uncomfortable matchups for the defense with him in that position.  Every snap and touch he gets like that is far less punishing than running him into the pile.

24 minutes ago, mrcompletely11 said:

I think having the 3 injuries after force feeding him the ball in 2019 (for what I will never understand) is pretty telling.  Faulk and Chris Johnson had a few more years after their best seasons that they were productive but man when it hits it hits hard and fast

My hope for CMC is that we start using him more as a slot receiver.  It puts the ball in his hands, which is something we want, but gets him less banged up.  I understand CMC is *capable* of running between the tackles, but is that really the best use of his talents?  Let Mike Davis or someone else take that punishment.  I want to see CMC play for years to come, he's too much fun to watch.

Not sure if we'll do that, but anything we can do to lower the punishment he takes and extend his career should be investigated and considered.

1 minute ago, CarolinaSunday said:

Well, we got rid of Cam and Greg in the same off-season, and also lost Luke...

Not even close to the same thing.

Cam has always been a polarizing figure in the fan base, for better or for worse.  Greg was CLEARLY on a downhill slide.  Luke was unavoidable.

You can look back a year later and say both Cam and Luke were let go for football reasons.  You think that will be true of Watson or Watt?  Unlikely.

1 hour ago, kungfoodude said:

I don't really seen that as very likely considering they are already struggling with cap issues WITHOUT the impeding hit that a trade would cause. 

This little nugget right here isn't getting enough attention, and it applies to both parties involved assuming that the trade involves players on both sides, which it likely will.  Pretty sure that if you trade a player, you have to eat the remainder of the signing bonus immediately.  That's 20 million for DeShaun, and Houston is already 19 million over the cap.  The easiest thing for them right now is to cut JJ Watt.  Brandin Cooks also looks precarious.

Now, can you imagine being the owner in Houston telling your fanbase, yea, we're getting rid of JJ Watt and DeShaun Watson?  Brutal.

31 minutes ago, Anybodyhome said:

Oh, look a list of teams in need of a QB! Who would have guessed?

Except for the Falcons, who are cap-strapped to Matty-boy they can't afford a QB; and the Raiders, who really don't need a QB as much as they need a WR and a couple O-linemen.

If the Raiders dump Carr we should absolutely bring him in.  Dude is legit.

Talking about compensatory picks is a cart before the horse argument.

You know what our real issue is?  Hitting on our draft picks in the first place.  The more draft picks you hit on to begin with, the greater your chances of losing someone who becomes a free agent.

Teams that draft well tend to get more compensatory picks over time because they bring in a lot of talent.  The salary cap "forces" the talent to spread out across the league to the extent that it can, which is what triggers those compensatory picks.

It generates a snowball effect for teams that draft well.  You get more picks, therefore bring in more players, and when drafting well, you bring in more players which you cannot keep all of.  So you lose some players, but get compensatory picks for them, taking you back to the beginning of the cycle where you bring in more good players.

The bottom line is we simply need to draft better top to bottom, and the compensatory picks will take care of themselves.

7 minutes ago, Ricky Spanish said:

Who throws the ball has nothing to do with how PFF grades receivers. It's based on a play by play and individual basis, and graded on if the receiver had a positive play, a negative play, or a neutral play. 

If DJ had to make a dope ass catch because Teddy threw it like crap, he would be rewarded.

Adams was the best WR in the league this year. His route running is Elite and he caught anything thrown near him. 

DJ's routes are OK, and he did fine but Adams was a monster all year.

 

You're not thinking it through.  There were plays there for DJ that Teddy simply couldn't or didn't make.  Those don't figure in to his grade from what I understand.  The grades are based on plays where he was actually the target.

This is why an NFL arm is required to allow DJ to really be his best.  There were numerous examples of plays where DJ was in great position to make a big splash play and Teddy didn't even look at him.  An NFL arm will really make that offense scary because the deep threat is 100% real with our WR's.

We need a couple O Line pickups, and a QB with an NFL arm and our offense is a legit top 10 offense, maybe top 5.  Rankings mean nothing.  DJ is the truth.

Will TB5 be on the roster next year?  Yes, 100%, he will.

Will he start?  At least as far as week 1 of 2021 is concerned, it seems very likely at this point, regardless of what we do during the offseason.

Will he start week 17 of 2021?  That is far less clear at this point.