Seltzer

We finally have an elite Oline, a competent QB, a RB1 caliber running back in Chuba (with Brooks still to come), and DJ & XL looked like the best starting WR's we've had in years. What else is there to "fix" on the offense? IMHO there's not much (outside of a TE that is consistent receiving threat). Our draft capital needs to be spent fixing the defense. We should be able to do that next offseason and be a legit playoff contender next year. Fixing the Oline & QB was the biggest part of this rebuild. There's no reason for this to take more than one more offseason. And extending DL is a no brainer, provided he wants to be here.

We have an elite Oline, a QB who can get him the ball, and a coach who has designed the offense around him being the #1 guy... other than an extension, what more could he want? Trading DJ would be stupid for both sides IMHO... Theilen for a day 3 pick seems reasonable for both sides

I think running the ball and keeping Burrow off the field is key. If we do that I think we have a good chance to win Otherwise, Burrow will expose our lack of pass rush with his weapons

Also, Sheldon Rankins is out, and BJ Hill is doubtful. Those are the Bengals starting DT's.

FWIW, Zavala played 22 snaps on Sunday and didn't give up a single pressure. Honestly, I didn't even realize he had replaced Lewis until near the end of the game. Hopefully, we don't hear his name on Sunday- that would probably be a good thing. And maybe this scheme is just a better fit (plus he's not a rookie) compared to whatever it was that we were supposedly running last year.

The fact that he wants to play is a great sign, even if he ultimately isn't able to go. That's the kind of player we need to build this culture around. Dan did fix the interior Oline, and Hunt & Lewis are straight-up "dawgs." He deserves his flowers for both these signings

I can see us winning, but I'm also mentally preparing myself to be screwed by an NFL that doesn't want to see one of their golden boys (Burrow) out of the national conversation this early on in the season... We will need to do enough to overcome what I expect to be at least 2-3 BS calls IMHO. Hopefully, we run the ball and keep Burrow off the field as much as possible

Remember, Tom Brady played 10 seasons after he turned 36... Just saying lol...

Sounds like he will be out just this week if things stay the same. Probably will play will some kind of brace and will probably have to address it in the offseason. I am impressed with Lewis & Hunt... they are both dawgs FR Good signings by Dan Morgan. Corbett has been stellar at center also

Was thinking the exact same thing

Wish we would have seen him and DB together for more than 1 game

That was the first glimpse of a true WR1 that we've seen since DJ Moore left (and he didn't always play at that level). DJ Moore is a beast after the catch, but just in terms of route running, I think Johnson clears him. Yesterday is what Johnson is capable if with good QB play.

Dan Morgan, I will forever sing your praises if you can figure out a way to bring Reddick back!

Did ISM get picked up elsewhere?... surprised we didn't sign him to PS if that was a possibility

Both these statements can be true, and it is how things transpired last season. There has never been more of a mismatch between how the roster was presented to the fanbase vs. what it actually was than last year. Fitterer deserved to be fired solely for trading up for a QB with the actual state of the roster. Personally, I think Tepper's meddling and impulsiveness led to the front office making promises to Tepper (and the fanbase) that were wildly unrealistic. As someone who has worked in sales for 20+ years, I can attest how easy it is to sign up for unrealistic results when you have an overbearing boss. However easy it might be in the moment, it never, ever ends well. We have never, ever been gaslit like that about the state of the team before last season. Especially the coaching staff piece, which turned out to be the biggest joke of all time. I bought into it- I think a lot of people did. In retrospect, the coaching staff had no cohesive plan, the offensive line was a disaster (both through injuries and just sucking), and our receivers were a joke outside of Theilen. Our TE's were equally atrocious. We looked utterly unprepared on offense almost every game. Going back to the sales analogy, you're taught early on (or should be) to underpromise & overdeliver... the exact opposite happened last year. I hope we don't repeat those mistakes again.

Most concerning question going into the season. I hope we still add someone TBH. I feel like there still have to be better options from elsewhere (just like CB). I think Eku Leota, DJ Johnson, and K'Lavon Chaisson have some potential, but it's scary right now how little proven depth we have. We are either going to have to blitz a lot, or hope our corners all play like Jaycee. I honestly feel pretty good about the team outside of this...

Easier to do that with vested veterans. Most of the cuts (younger guys) have to pass through waivers, and the Panthers didn't want to risk that. I'm sure when Matthews was originally cut the Panthers told him this was their plan. Only real risk was Matthews wanting to sign with someone else, which he obviously didn't want to do. Same reason we waited to cut ISM & Coker IMO. Let teams make the initial rosters post-waiver claims and then try to cut them and sneak them back on the practice squad. I think the team always viewed Matthews as a core 53-player, but this was basically just a charade to not risk losing other players knowing they could easily resign Matthews after cuts & waiver claims.

This is the year for Bryce to live up to his draft status. Players, coaches, (hell anyone with eyeballs and knows football) knows last year's situation was impossible for anyone to succeed in. And not just the QB, although it was the obvious focal point due to the trade-up. Listen to the interview with Cam Jordan... players (& agents & coaches & executives around the league know what a mess the Panthers organization has been... As a fanbase, the QB is the lightning rod (and deservedly so for what they get paid & the praise they receive when the team is winning), but to place 6+ years of organizational failure by Tepper at the feet of a rookie QB was and remains stupid IMHO. That being said, the NFL is Not For Long, and nobody cares about what's fair or not in the long run. Bryce was picked #1... you either live up to that or you don't... Bryce needs to be better this year, but it's not just him. This organization needs to be better from the top down. And we all hope that starts with Tepper leaving football solely to the football people. The Panthers have had some bad seasons in our existence, but last year was unequivocally the lowest point in franchise history in terms of organizational dysfunction... I was here for 2001 & 2010. Those were bad seasons, but they truthfully didn't feel as hopeless as last year did (and in 2010 we knew we would be in the running for Andrew Luck or Cam Newton). And for all the crap we (rightfully) give Matt Rhule, never did we look as uninspired & unprepared as we did last year during whatever the Frank Reich Era was... Those 11 games will remain the most bizarre chapter in Panthers history... Honestly, Canales has been a breath of fresh air so far, but no one gives a poo (and rightfully so) about anything other than winning. The Panthers have made a lot of big moves (not just the Bryce trade-up), and most, if not all, have looked bad up until this point. That's the reality. We are the laughingstock of the NFL right now. It sucks, but only winning and not being ass will fix this issue. I personally hope BY9 proves people wrong, and I think he can. But the proof is in the result on the field. I'm willing to give a complete mulligan for last year b/c I've never seen anything like that in terms of dysfunction, but Bryce will not be the unquestioned starter going into next year if he doesn't improve (along with the rest of the team) this year.

This might be the first thing you've ever said that I fully agree with... but you are 100% correct on this. Dealing with 3 kids & my favorite sports team being an embarrassment for 6 years & counting... it's definitely a necessity...

100%. The entire coaching staff seemed so blase last year... I've never seen a staff less prepared (and devoid of emotion) as the offensive coaches. Look, these players should feel the weight of professional expectations... most of us on this board do in different capacities. The optics of a basement-dwelling team playing ping pong while hard working fans drop thousands of dollars on a team that has been out of playoff contention 5 of the last 6 years by Halloween is horrific... Hell, my company got bought last year, sales have dropped this year, and over 100 people have been let go... the real world is cold AF... not unlike the NFL. I want the Carolina Panthers to be an organization that isn't the laughingstock of the league, and where winning is the ultimate goal every day. Like Steve Smith famously use to say, "We're all day-to-day in this world." And if a (hopefully) future HOFer had that attitude, so should everyone else in this organization from top to bottom.

I agree 100%, but you know how demoralizing this has to be for the depth CB's that made the initial 53?? This is the most damning indictment I've ever seen on a position group... They basically said if your name isn't Jaycee Horn or Dane Jackson, we ain't got any use for the rest of you CB's, especially the guys slated to play on the outside...

Yeah, I've never seen anything like this in franchise history... For all their talk about liking the corner depth, actions speak louder than words... The coaching staff obviously has no confidence in any of the healthy corners outside of Horn...

100%. I think we are going to run a lot of 2 TE sets, and I think it's almost a forgone conclusion we keep 4 TEs. I think Thomas, Tremble, Sanders, and Matthews will all make the team. I also think there is a chance we only keep 5 WRs (especially if we can find a trade partner for TMJ) given the practice squad elevation rules (elevate a guy up to 3 times during the season before you have to add them to the active roster). I ultimately think we keep 6 WRs, but I am 99.9999% sure we're keeping 4 TEs, and Ian Thomas will be one of those 4, at least for this year.

It's the reason a lot of us old timers have stayed away. I've never in my entire life seen so many supposed fans actively root against our own guy. It's embarrassing

One caveat to all the roster talk is that with the Panthers having the number 1 priority for waiver claims through Week 4, there probably will be a good amount of churn among the final roster spots even into the season. I think the roster will be even more fluid than most years especially over the next 6 weeks