tukafan21

Sure, but that’s because a 2nd rounder they drafted before Chase ended up becoming what he did. Higgins play put them in the situation, we’d be drafting a player with the expectation/hope that they pan out and thus putting ourselves into the situation. There is a big difference between the two there. Not a fan of drafting a player in the 1st round knowing we HAVE to trade him or another young player we like within a few years because we can’t pay them both (all). We were a sub .500 team, and while I love our FA’s so far, we still have far too many needs to use our 1st rounder in that way right now. If it was the final piece to make us a SB contender, sure, you do it and hope you win a ring in the first couple years and then who cares what you have to deal with, it got the job done.

I've said this a few times in the past few weeks, WR just cannot be on the board for us in the 1st round this year or we're just setting ourselves up for a problem in a couple of years. As it is, we're already looking at needing to do extensions for T-Mac and Coker (assuming they both progress as we all expect) in possibly the same offseason, or at worst, just one year apart. Adding another 1st round WR to that mix who will be eligible for an extension in the same time frame is basically already announcing that at least one of the 3 of them will not be on the team in 4 years time. I realize you want to maximize your team's ability every season, but using a 1st round pick on a player you either know will be sent out 4 years from now and/or they will push out another young player you're really high on (Coker), just would be a poor use of current assets. Just look at how much it screwed over the Bengals to have to pay Burrow, Chase, and Higgins all in such a short time frame, and at least one of them was a QB. The only way I'm okay drafting a WR in the 1st this year is if we're then flipping Coker for say, a 2nd round pick. And I don't want to trade Coker, nor do I think anyone would give us that high of a pick for him right now either.

there isn't a trade package in the league I'd trade him for. This past season was without question the most fun I've ever had as a Panthers fan. Getting to watch my guy win OROY for us was indescribable (and yes, that includes 2015). I want us to be good, I want us to compete for SB's, but even if we're not, if he's on the team, I'm going to enjoy watching Panthers football. Which is something I haven't been able to say for a very long time. Then to follow all of that up with my first Final Four this past weekend (as I was a Freshman a few years after our last one in 2001), this past 12 months have been absurd for my sports fandom, there aren't words that accurately capture how it's felt.

lol, apparently I also basically said the same thing in that thread (except for the XL part, which the idea of grew on me during this season when he still struggled)

I said this before he was traded to Washington and people here wanted to pick him up. Not only is he still living off that one season, but he also needs to be used in a very specific and unique way to even try and replicate that, as he really didn't excel in any one area that year, he was just a unique jack of all trades that season. I also still think that if the team were to fully buy into the idea of it, we could turn XL into a similar type of player that Deebo was that year. Not a downfield threat, but a guy who gets a few handoffs, a few jet sweeps, some short crossers to put the ball in his hands early and let him run. We need to accept that XL just isn't going to be a great WR, but he could be a useful gadget guy in a role of Deebo or Cordarelle Patterson. But it would take full buy-in from both XL and the team as he'd need to work on his return game and handoffs over downfield receiving.

I can't see Allen wanting to leave the Chargers again, but if he is open to it, I think he'd be an outstanding pickup for us. He's still a pretty good slot WR, but he's also a guy that T-Mac and Coker can really learn from, basically a Thielen type of a pro's pro, but a significantly better player than Thielen was at this point in their careers.

And Gronk was a 2nd rounder (albeit only because he missed the entire season before the draft due to injury). If we hit on a mid round TE who turns into a clear cut Top 5 TE in NFL history (like Kelce), that's different, but using 1st round capital on someone who likely wouldn't even be a Top 5 TE in the NFL over the next 5 years just doesn't seem smart use of resources.

But I also just pointed out how most of the best teams of the last 2-4 years have not had elite TE play. You're cherry picking the best TE in NFL history and another who is easily Top 5 and has an argument of being 2nd (not to mention, those teams had realistically the 2 best QB's to ever play the game, and Bryce 'aint that). I'm not going to pretend I remember Olsen's contracts when he was here, but I don't remember him ever being one of those players on contracts like the elite TE's today get. And that's why I'm not really too hung up on adding that type of TE, I just think the money is better used elsewhere and we go TE by committee with 2-3 players who compliment each other well.

Have they though? I'll give you KC with Kelce, but c'mon, they weren't winning those SB's because they had a great TE, it was a combination of Mahomes and some great defenses. Will also give you the 49ers and Ravens with Kittle and Andrews, but even then, both have missed time with injuries the last few years. After those 3 teams, the best teams of the last 2-3 years have not had elite TEs The Eagles had Goedert, he's good, not great. The Bills have also had good but not great TE's The Rams have had average TEs and still consistently run 2 and 3 TE sets with them and still win. The Bucs have been winning the South without a great TE The Lions' Laporta is more a name than a highly productive TE. The Texans have had a serviceable TE in Shultz, but nothing too amazing. Some of the best TE's in the league the last few years have been on some of the worst teams. McBride, Bowers, Warren, Njoku, even Pitts this past year. A true elite TE is absolutely a weapon in today's game, but I think the best teams use that money elsewhere and find serviceable TE play, usually through a committee where each TE brings something else to the table.

Nay No point in "wasting" even a mid round pick on a QB this year in case Bryce turns into that guy for us. And if he doesn't, I'd rather just take a shot on a QB in the 1st next year than hope we get lucky in the mid rounds this year.

Yes and no, part of why people were saying that about this year's draft class was the expectation by many that Manning and Dante Moore would have been coming out. They very well could be the #1 and #2 picks in the draft next year, so hard to be too worried about next year's class for the reason of "they were saying that about this year" due to that.

It could be Metchie, it could be Horn Jr, and even though I'm basically ready to move on, it very well could end up being XL too. But that's why I don't really like the idea of a WR in the 1st, I think we can find a way to make that slot position work with what we have and/or another signing or mid round pick. Drafting a WR in the 1st this year would be 3 years in a row while also hitting on an UDFA at the position in the same time frame, just a bad use of resources currently and sets you up for problems keeping them together as they all hit contract extensions at the same time frame.

Not a fan of WR in the 1st unless the team has reservations about Coker's ceiling. I think Coker can be a perfect #2 to T-Mac, and if that's the case, drafting a WR in the 1st Round this year makes no sense. Sure it would upgrade our #3 WR spot, whether it's the rookie or Coker in that role, but in reality it doesn't make sense for the long term. Doing that means we're drafting Coker's replacement, as if he hit on the pick, you can't have 3 WRs who all need to get paid within a year of each other or you run into the problems the Bengals are in right now, who are struggling just to pay 2 of them, let alone 3. We need to compliment T-Mac and Coker with a serviceable speedy #3 right now, which is a type of player you usually can get on the cheap in FA year to year or in the 3/4 round range. Then if we want to bring in a better #3 option, we do it in the 1st Round a year or two after T-Mac and Coker get their big extensions, as then it's a more manageable WR for cap purposes for 3-5 more years.

This And with possibly needing to replace Bryce next year and a deep QB class, I do not hate the idea of moving far enough back to pick up another 1st rounder next year out of the deal. I wouldn't have said that a week ago, but I also never expected us to land 3 big FA's at our 3 biggest positions of need like we have, it totally changes things.

Am I the only one who doesn't understand this fan bases infatuation with adding a high end TE? Especially when we have some bigger bodies in T-Mac and Coker who can slide into the slot at times and provide the big dependable target over the middle that most teams use their TE for. I mean, sure, it would be nice to have one of those elite TE's, but I feel like that's a position your better off going cheap with a committee who each bring something different to the table while spending our cap room on the more important positions. I like the potential we saw from Evans this year, Sanders could be a best if he can stay healthy, and Tremble has improved as well. Just feels like spending high draft picks or cap space on other needs and more important positions is a better use of our resources than splashing on a TE in the draft or FA. Are those guys on the level of the Bowers or McBride's of the world? Of course not, but we also are paying a fraction of the cost on our TE room than they are, and we're able to use that money for other needs.