Gapanthersfan

Watching the Luke interview, it was striking how much not only he, but his teammates as well, loved the game of football. They lived and breathed it. Greg, TD, Luke, Cam, etc. Luke talked about how instrumental it was in his development. Besides Horn and maybe Brown, I’m not sure we have anyone that truly lives and breathes this game. That’s a big, big problem. Not only do we lack talent, the cupboard is completely devoid of vet players who straight up love football. We’ve got dudes that play like it’s just a job, and they get paid regardless. I’m not really sure how to fix this. We have to have at least 2 INCREDIBLE drafts where we luck in to a few gamebreakers. As it is right now, any vet we bring in to this ish hole on a big $ contract is sure to get stale and check out.

2 Red Bulls and a BC powder. Today’s as good a day as any to go off the reservation. I’ll find my way back tomorrow. No homo. You take a chick out. Everyone said she’s great in the sack and you’ve been on a dry spell for a while… years. Last one really spoiled you and you know you shouldn’t have dumped her, but you’re dumb, so you did. This new broad damn sure doesn’t look the part but you’re going off what your homies told you. So here it is. First date. She farts. Twice. Silent but violent variety, and you know it was her. It’ll get better but damn, girl. Bad look. You go out a few more times. Nothing on the booty front. No play. Not even close. She’s on her phone while you’re saying goodbye. It’s that bad…. And each time you’re seeing more and more deal breakers. Each date, same thing. Squeakers. Bad breath. Chewing with her mouth open. It’ll get better. She just takes some time to get to know you, ‘ but then it’s on like donkey Kong. Fade it.’ You tell yourself, and the growing group of detractors telling… you to run! And then it happens. Nice dinner. Pleasant conversation and she bathed. You’re constantly making ‘adjustments’… like you’re in 7th grade again. as you can’t help but thinking about… later… that ended with the peck on the cheek. Fak. But that’s ok. At least she got off her phone this time. Going out next week. It’s on! You’re ‘blue’ all damn week. This is finally it, right? F no it’s not. It goes even worse. More money wasted, and you’re paying A LOT of money on this broad. You start listening to more Biz Markie, Hall and Oates and Ice T. Yes, you are playing yourself on this man eater, and she does have a friend. So you decide to give it a few months off, that maybe it’ll be different next time around. Well, it’s not. It’s actually even worse and you realized that she jacked your bank account to the tune of$36 million. So now the same homies that steered you in to this disaster are straight clowning your broke ass. It’s going to take you years to climb out from the ruin this strumpet has drug you through. Your family, rightfully hates her. They say that she better not ever, EVER EVER EVER EVER EVER, come to Sunday dinner again… but you take her anyway, because that’s what naive dumb people do. You then break it to your boys that you’re going to give her a few more dates, just to make sure. One of them laughed so hard he is now intubated in the icu at Grady with a subarachnoid hemorrhage. he is day to day. Another went back to day drinking popov. Last one knows a ‘guy’ in Atlanta they call ‘bodybag.’ I’ve never known someone to put a contract out on themself, but this is 2024 and we live in strange times. If Bryce F-in Young can scam his way in to the most dominant, premier college FB program of the past decade and then find a way to be the #1 overall pick in the NFL draft, we truly are in end times. I normally don’t start to hallucinate until later but I think I’m ok to ride this one out. I appreciate everyone’s concern.

This team doesn’t owe Bryce jack ish. Bryce owes his teammates a winning effort but he elected to watch tv and play video games when he could have at least tried.

Coming in to the nfl thinking that he was smarter that OGs that have dedicated their life to the game. That he would take the league over. from there has sprung every ill fated decision of his tenure.

Of all the fancy tools used in player evaluation, it ALWAYS comes down to the eye test. Far, far from perfect but it is still the most reliable test going. This team under Tep has repeatedly ignored that one most. Crucial. Aspect. It’s like they lose the forest through the trees. Analytics works… when the data inputs are complete. Problem is that there will always be variables that are unique to that particular situation.

This is awesome and depressing all at the same time.

Frank really wanted this to be his swan song. His chance to come back to where he started. He was probably dreaming up plays for Stroud after Tep promised that he had his pick of his dude. You can’t convince me that Frank came here with the intention of coaching Bryce. Frank saw that Bryce just didn’t have it after the first few days of camp and it’s a wrap from there.

Every year the pundits seem to get their jollies over whatever new evaluation tool they cook up. They all seem to have a spin on whatever cognitive dimension they want to evaluate… problem is football a game of giant gladiators whose sole purpose is to dominate and break the will of their opponent as quickly as possible. If you’re selling the farm, hopefully, you choose someone who looks like a football player. I’m not convinced that everyone has their own board. It’s all a big echo chamber. They all use the same phrases and buzzwords. It’s all a big collective with detractors being shunned.

I could see that being the case.

So the Sam Darnold panthers had a strong running game, Dawg mentality, and DJ Moore. Sam showed some progress (he still had some damnit, Sam plays, but so did our 2 best QBs of all time)… and it was all burned down, for this. It was moldable. But nope. Too conventional. Right now, I have no idea what the base is because we seem to keep falling through every floor we step on.

Yet another fail on an attempt to show the NFL that he’s smarter than everyone else. Choose prototypical physically limited underdog and turn him in to a champion. Receive praise and recognition for being so unconventional…. only to fail again, demonstrating that the status quo is the MO for good reason. I’ve come to see that Tep seems to loathe winning conventionally, or he just hates winning, period. Is Chuba is the doghouse? He has shown that getting him in to the second level makes for a long day on their defense, yet they have designed 0 plays for specifically him. It’s like they want a 30+ yard play on every throw or they run Chuba up the middle, then throw Sanders in on 3rd down for a failed run up the gut. It just feels bizarre, the energy, like there is something else. Are players weary that Tep’s plan is to 100% put Bryce back in regardless? This team is not able to truly move forward with him still wearing our uniform. I don’t know. I know there’s now tape and all of that and we’ve gone back to being embarrassing…. the whole feel is just weird.

The play calling feels really tankish. Are we running the Tepper playbook?

This is just so odd. The talent is supposedly there on offense… so, what’s the deal?

This team just spent a shi* ton of $ on the offense. Coming due are contracts on a starting quality NFl QB who still has a lot of gas in the tank, a legit #1 WR, and a RB who has been killing it. Does anyone truly think we can retain all 3 while not murdering our cap #? Priority has to go Andy then Johnson then Chuba. Will Andy require ‘please don’t go’ type money? He won’t want a rental contract. Someone will offer him 3 years for a lot of $. Promise you. This has been a showcase year for him. Can we beat that if we’re tied to the other 2? I love Chuba but once Brooks (hopefully) starts getting some snaps, his time is limited. I LOVE how he has developed. You take a second + a defensive starter (if a team is that desperate) and don’t look back. Bryce cap hit in ‘25 is $10 million. In ‘26 it’s $12 million. We HAVE to find a team willing to eat that. Morgan and co are in a tight spot.

Ain’t that some ish? This team, where LB is the ONLY position where we have had any modicum of consistent success. All Pros and HOF’ers. Now it is the most glaring weakness, and it’s really not even close.

No more big moves for offensive players, for now, please. We’re looking (hopefully) for someone fresh and moldable. No baggage. Immediately accepted by fans and players. What if dude decides to get himself in trouble again.

It’s kind of funny. The original person who coined the phrase is the most intense, hard to find words to describe, competitor this team will ever know. The other is the biggest soft spoken lamb this franchise will ever know.

Bryce’s limitations are physical. No amount of standing on the sideline will change that. Players, fans… everyone knows that. The media wants the sideshow to continue so they throw this out to try to influence the team’s actions. Dave doing this is a big F all of you to the locker room. Bryce is a completely embarrassing, mostly on him guaranteed L where 10 fans show up to the stadium and the sideshow can continue. Andy is a probable L where he shoulders some blame but he will perform as an NFL qb should. We are guaranteed to see at least a few ‘hell yes’ type plays where WRs look like actual WRs. Bryce gets the start and keeps playing? You will have guys up for contracts extensions who can’t wait to jump ship, regardless of the $. Keep Andy and draft a guy who actually flashes ability. There is 0.0 to gain putting BY in. He is gone either way. What, so we might, but probably not, get his trade value up from a 6th to a 3rd? What’s to gain? There is no gain. This either an attempt to keep this team a complete clown show or an even more desperate by the Stans to show that they weren’t wrong.

Beware the Ides or March (October). He’ll be cut next week.

We just need to stack the offense with punt returners from LA. I never thought about just how bad this team’s record at drafting WRs has been, but wow.

You either want to be the best and you play every snap like you’re the baddest MF’er on the field, or you don’t. Look at the best WRs, DEs, RBs, etc. Then you have what we draft every year. Soft as applesauce.

Panthers way is to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. We could be heralded for such a sage move to get a future all pro. We could be set for a decade with the hardest piece to get in all of football. The trade could have looked like a bargain. Naw.

The return of Thielen will push Chuba and Johnson’s production to another level. I don’t think either will be wisely spent money as both figures will be cringe worthy. Resources have to be dedicated on defense even if it means offense production slips a bit. The o line has been mostly solidified except for center and LT. Money and draft capital have to go defense in the offseason, or trading Chuba and/or Johnson for good D talent. Trade would be better than drafting. Keep MJ, trade Chuba and Johnson for genuine NFL defensive starters. Lock up Thielen and Andy for 2 more years. Develop XL and the other WRs and see what we got this coming season. If we can add 3-4 quality defensive starters via trade and draft for this coming season, that would be huge.

When there is a strong emotional attachment to a player, people will frequently see what they want to believe instead of believing what they see. They will see 2+2=5, believe it with every fiber of their being, and no one can talk them out of it despite of how truly wrong it is. It’s a perspective that is 180 degrees out of phase. Sprinkle in some good old fashioned never-wrong-about-anything personality characteristics and you’ve got yourself a true Stan. Or team owner.

So Chuba played poorly? Wasn’t Andy sacked at least twice?