LinvilleGorge

He got cut so that answers that question. If there was any offer on the table we would've taken it versus cutting him.

I expected this to ultimately happen but I'm surprised it happened prior to at least rookie mini camp. I figured we'd want to at least get eyes on our new rookies before making the move. I honestly expected it to waiting until final roster cuts.

"Paid Like Tarzan, Plays Like Jane"

You serious Clark? Stacked? We have a second year 4th rounder who showed some flashes as a rookie. A #2 who is primarily a blocker who has under 800 career receiving yards through four seasons, and now we've added a 5th round rookie to the mix. I mean, there's potential there. There's reason for cautious optimism. But stacked? Definitely far from stacked. I mean, let's be honest... how many starting TEs across the league wouldn't immediately be penciled in as the starter on this roster?

I mean, yeah... you could. But would it immediately get tossed out with you gaining nothing but mocking headlines in sports media? Yeah, that too.

Man, when the Steelers decide to cut bait you really do need to just clam up and not bite. LOL

Man, for a 24 year old WR with his talent to get traded for that the overall view of him around the league must have been that he was nuclear radioactive level toxic.

"Fan" suing NFL for $100 million over emotional distress caused by Shedeur Sanders' draft slide. https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/fan-sues-nfl-for-100-million-over-shedeur-sanders-draft-slide-citing-emotional-distress-and-trauma/ Spoiler alert: it's Mel Kiper Jr. and he's going to use his ESPN's draft coverage as irrefutable proof of his devastating emotional distress. LOL

I just don't see how winning is possible this year. I mean, their penciled in starter is Mason Rudolph. I'd venture to say there's a decent chance they're trotting out a 6th round rookie at QB this season in Will Howard just to see what he can do out there before they feel forced to push all their chips to the middle in the draft next year.

I wonder if the Steelers are setting themselves up for a tank year to get a QB? Trading talented head case Pickens, rumors that TJ Watt is on the trading block, that dumpster fire of a QB room, etc. It sure doesn't look like they're trying to win next year.

Pickens is talented but they're just tired of putting up with his bullshit. Nothing like having your WR engaging in an MMA fight with a DB on the football field as the ball falls to the turf no one involved having noticed it had been thrown. LOL

I sure hope not. Good grief it seems like the Panthers have more than paid their fair share to the injury goblin over the years. So many of our elite talents have been detailed in their prime by major injuries. From Cam to Beason to Morgan to Luke. You can fairly include guys like KB who looked to be emerging as an elite WR and guys like Oher who was actually looking like the blindsided protector he was hailed to be. Despite his resurgence much of TD's prime was stolen from us with him fighting back from ACL after ACL. I get that football is a brutal sport, but damn... can't we just have some nice things every now and then without injuries fuging it up?

Because they signed him to an appropriate contract. His deal is in the range of a #3 TE who is probably expected to make the roster but if he doesn't, oh well. It's not gonna hurt us much at all to cut bait on him. That's who Ian Thomas is as an NFL player. A guy who should be bouncing around the league trying to make it as a bottom of the roster type of player. Not a guy that you sign to a mid-level starter type of contract like the Panthers did.

I hope so. I liked him coming into the draft but then he hit the field and looked utterly lost and just like he flat out didn't belong and it was like "UH OH. That's not good." But he really showed improvement through the mid-portion of the season before that nasty spill seemed like it just kinda derailed the rest of his season.

Yeah, the other quote was a little odd but at the end of the day he's a football player not a public speaker. He's a veteran player who is one of the best on the league at his position and there's been no coaching or defensive scheme change so yeah, it's understandable why his goal is simply about being out there on opening day. For a guy like him OTAs and training camp aren't the goal. It's about the games that count.

Honestly it's a little odd that there seems to be any doubt that he'd be ready for the start of the season. Reasonable expectations based on normal recovery timeframe from that injury would've had him expected to be a full participant in OTAs.

Speaking of horse racing, if you don't realize how dominant Secretariat was, go back and watch his Belmont Stakes. Only four other horses even bothered to show. He won by like a quarter of a mile. He still holds the record for the fastest Kentucky Derby. He won by two and a half lengths which doesn't sound all that impressive until you realize that the the second place horse is still the second fastest Derby time ever and only other horse to finish in under two minutes. Every horse in this year's Derby was a direct descendent of Secretariat. His Kentucky Derby time would've translated to winning by about 15 horse lengths yesterday.

Cam had a natural cannon though. When you have elite talent you can get away with not doing things the "right" way. There's a lot of things elite talents do that you'd never coach because the vast majority of players can't get away with it. Bryce needs to be watching guys like Brady and Brees, not guys like Cam or Mahomes or Lamar. You don't have to have off the charts physical talent to be great but you better not be trying to do the things the guys with the off the charts talent do or it's gonna be disastrous.

I have no concerns with him on the field. All of the concern is about how much time he's had to spend off the field.

Enough about a 5th round nepo baby.

I get it. Had it not been posted here I probably wouldn't have seen it either. But if you'd seen it you'd understand how tone deaf it comes across to try to be acting like we don't actually know if Smitty even did it. Bruh, he did it. Oh boy did he ever. LOL

Sure looked that way. That draft room looked like a funeral when the pick was announced and they'd already taken a QB two rounds earlier. Did not seem like a decision made by the folks in that room. Said it during the draft.

Seems like we were gonna take T-Mac if he was available unless someone offered something crazy. I'm guessing the Walker smokescreen was them just guessing on who was going to be the most sought after guy at that spot if T-Mac was gone since he was probably out plan B if T-Mac was gone