MHS831

I met Shaq at an OTA---if you recall, he was absent until the end due to Washington being on the quarter system. He was very nice--soft spoken--but I was thinking "Linebacker?" As an OLB in a 4-3, he was small. I did not see 6'0"--I saw 5'10-5'11 tops and maybe 220. When we converted to a 3-4, that moved him inside and, in my opinion, shortened his career. He just does not have the frame for ILB duties. If you watch enough film, you will see that Shaq often was late getting to the hole and tackled from the side a lot. Morgan and Luke were in the hole square with the LOS and talking on blocks and RBs head on. Had Shaq met pulling guards and fullbacks in the hole like that, he would not have lasted 4 years. He had a very frail frame.

He said (about Tepper), "We are getting a new indoor practice facility outside."

I have always loved the panthers in a platonic way--After their lawyer sent me a cease and desist letter and explained the meaning of "keep pounding."

I looked at this from a 21-year old perspective and I was a dumbass college student who would have applauded it and laughed. Reason? I was not an empathetic person and would gladly humiliate someone for a laugh--I cringe now when I think of it. However, I would not have come close to having the balls it took to do something like this. Your father's job? targeting a person who is in an emotional free fall? Forget community service-therapy is needed because there are some very disturbing issues here. For example, nearly every serial killer was abusive to animals as children. Punishment is not effective at modifying behavior and attitude. I would make his apology public and personal--I would have flown him to Shedeur Sanders and met with him if he'd accept. Then I would let a shrink peek into his brain to see why he not only thought of doing this, he did it. Say what you want about Sanders--if you consider the context of his world--whether it was authentic or fabricated or not--Sanders is another 21-23 year old kid, was experiencing emotional pain and rejection like he had never experienced before. Man, this was cold-hearted.

They should have fined the Falcons 28 dollars, and the DC 3 bucks.

I think there was some self-imposed community service mentioned. No details.

With the exception of knowing our obvious needs and who we were talking to along the way, my question is this: How did so many people start on this Jalon Walker frenzy? I think this--everyone wants to have a voice, make a prediction. Now with social media and 24 hour tv, networks, etc. it is more like a middle school grapevine than it is a process where people actually dig for real evidence and reasons. Speculative journalism is lazy, and since there are now 2,348.356 podcasters with basement studios blasting nonsense into our phones all day, I think they just cut and paste ideas. Yes, coaches lie and mislead, but I don't think Morgan or Canales did. You are only as reliable as your sources. Was Morgan more deliberate this year? I think he heard the gossip and decided to downplay WR. He said, (paraphrasing) "We like our WR room. We will probably add to it at some point." Not a lie, but definitely downplaying things. I was convinced that we needed a blazer to keep safeties honest, but to be honest, I am not sure that we have the QB with the arm to keep safeties honest. We have Coker who is 6'1", Theilen is 6'2", and Legette is 6'3" and now TMac is 6'4"+. It seems size has more value than blazing deep speed. If I had known they thought that, I might have gone with TMac all along--I thought he was not a good fit. And if you look at the Panther guide and consider the talent they met with in the first round, there was only one offensive player--TMac. There was another quote that Morgan made that might have been a bit revealing or at least directive. (Paraphrasing) "We want players that were productive in college." Well, TMac was very productive. In 2023 and in 2024, he averaged 108.8 yards per game. He is also a great artist. Drew this portrait of Bryce Young from memory: Many people spent 3 months absolutely confident that Jalon Walker would play edge here. We had a need at edge, but with Clowney, Wonnum, and Jones, were we OK if we drafted a second round Edge? Was Walker the answer? Unlike Hunter, he is a versatile player who could be awesome in the right system, but if used as a pure edge, he is not a top 10 player. I was convinced that we would sign Jalon and as much as I like the kid, I could not feel good about the pick. Mykel Williams scared me. Both might be great players, but I could not see it. So was Scourton productive? He was as a Jr when he was standing. When asked to be other things, he lost his edge (pun intended). In essence, I think we got the best pure edge when you take away the other things he was supposed to do. Walker's productivity was based on his versatility--something he would lose as a pure edge--so we would not really be meeting needs at edge. Scourton, on the other hand, is better when not asked to be versatile. Princely had 10.5 sacks in the SEC. It simply makes sense.

what I noticed when I watched minutes and minutes of his video--he is really effective at varying his speeds during the route and he is very good at getting open and improvising when the play breaks down. I feel that he will make XL step up. I love the WR room. I was watching Horn--man, he goes from zero to 60 quickly, and he sure looks faster than 4.46. He was often the checkdown WR for SS. I think we could have something there-

I probably predicted about 30 players over time--I found it increases your odds. When I heard Morgan say that Canales wanted a tall receiver, I think we all would have known TMac was the pick. I do believe that Morgan pooped a little when Xavier Legette decided to go public and tell the media that he was told he'd be the Panthers pick.

Yes. I do not want to cut any of them--scared the next Coker, Hoover, Theilen etc. is in there. I just get the feeling that we researched the bottom of the roster as much or more than the top.

I wrote a long dissertation on who they would pick, breaking down the draft by needs and player availability and concluded (at that time) that we would go WR in the first. Being right is humbling and dignifying. I predicted that the Panthers would draft Matthew Golden.

It is probably harder to justify taking plays off in a draft where you are drafted six picks after a freak of nature--How Hunter did it is beyond me--and in Colorado of all places! WRs run sprint after sprint. Arizona was playing from behind a lot and that means pass every play. I get it.

Imagine where we'd be if AT retired and an UDFA had not secured a roster spot and played well.

Here is how I do it--consider that most teams improve (at least on paper) each year: QB: Can we say we improved here? Bryce is trending up and we got him 3 weapons and no more protection. WASH RB: Adding Dowdy and Eteinne is a pretty significant upgrade. UPGRADE TE: Adding a large TE with good hands and initial quickness over Thomas. Tremble and Sanders should improve. UPGRADE. OT: Ickey is improving each season and Moton (we hope) will be healed up and ready to go. WASH OG: No changes WASH C : No changes WASH WR: Added the best WR in the draft, one that other teams tried to trade up to get. Added Horn, and the Colorado WRs were scary good (making Shedeur look good). XL and Coker will improve. Lots to like. UPGRADE In my view, we needed to upgrade WR, TE, and RB. We did. I am guessing that C and OT are on the table to be upgraded in 2026. Edge: Nic and Princely replace Barno and Johnson and join Clowney, Wonnum, and Jones. Strong room. Biggest Need. UPGRADE DL: We get Brown back, so upgrade without doing another thing. Wharton, Brown III are both upgrades. Cam Jackson as a rookie NT---depth and size we did not have. UPGRADE LB: We added Rozenboom in free agency, and he was a decent addition. I think we will add an UDFA. I think our LB play will improve with better edge, DL, and S play. SLIGHT UPGRADE CB: Horn and Jackson are back, both following their best seasons. We added a CB (Devonshire) off the waiver wire and there are a few UDFAs who could actually make the team. WASH S: Ransom and Moehrig will probably start, with Richardson and (maybe Nick Scott) as depth. I think we are going to like these Safeties. UPGRADE We had desperate needs for Edge players, IDL, and Safeties. We upgraded them all. I am not happy with the ILB situation or CB depth. Special Teams: Too early to tell. BASICALLY, ON OFFENSE WE UPGRADED WEAPONS IN 3 AREAS WITH 4 PLAYERS. THE OL IS UNCHANGED. ON DEFENSE, WE UPGRADED DE, NT EDGE, AND S--4 AREAS WITH 4 DRAFT PICKS (edge, edge, safety, and nose) and 5 FREE AGENTS (nose, defensive end/DT, edge, corner, safety) THAT IS A HUGE OVERHAUL, with starters at DE (2), NT, OLB Edge, and Safety--a total of 6 of 11 players who did not play last season (including D. Brown). We won 5 games last season. I think we can win 8.5 if all goes well.

Smitty probably envies a 6-5 guy and sees him taking his gifts for granted. He had to work his butt off to play outside at 5-9. I think perspective has a lot to do with his evaluation. TMac played on a bad team. He was on the field a lot. Maybe he makes an assumption when he states that TMac loafed when the ball was not coming to him. Maybe he was advised to catch his breath during those plays--conditioning, coaching, etc. could have been an influence. Smitty can say what he sees, but not why he sees it, if that involves assessing TMac's mindset.

A friend of mine, Chip, was taking an exam in a business course that he had failed twice before. He would have to drop out of his major if he failed it for a third time--he claimed the professor, Dr. Brown, despised him, and several others who had Dr. Brown's class with Chip confirmed that Dr. Brown's hatred for Chip was obvious. Before the exam, Chip was up all night cramming, confiding to his roommate Jeff how nervous he was. Jeff was understanding and listened carefully. During the exam (an evening course) Jeff was at work delivering flowers for a local florist. As Chip describes it, a woman (another student who worked with Jeff) entered the classroom with flowers and a card with the words "Dr. Brown" written on the card. The professor immediately sent the girl out; Jeff was watching from the hallway. She left the flowers on his desk and scampered out. Chip laughed because he thought the professor, a man he hated, was being pranked. A few minutes later, the professor opened the envelope, and read the card. Chip was still laughing. He walked toward the students, still taking a timed test, and stopped at Chip's desk, staring at him. Chip stopped laughing. He dropped the card on Chip's desk while snarling at him silently. Chip read the card, "Dr. Brown. I can't tell you how much I have grown under the three semesters of your tutelage and guidance. You are my role model. I will miss you." --Chip Fxxxxx. Chip made a C.

The most important aspect of a prank is that it has no singular victim or is not personal in any way. The genius of a prank is that it might elevate the fun of a rivalry or something like that. This had a victim--and it was targeting an individual so it is malicious and stupid in that his father's job could have been compromised. As stated, I would have thought it was funny at age 22, but I grew up. I think Jared Allen's friends did the same thing to him by calling him from a back room at his draft party---that was wrong too, but they were in their early 20s. In fact the one story I did not share about the pranks between Yale and Harvard (not verified, but funny): https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/a-harvard-stadium-pigeon-prank-that-pavlov-would-be-proud-of

Not trying to pry, but 1 year old is too young to play football. I stand firm on that position. ...Wasn't there a player who was drafted and everyone bought his jersey and then he changed the number before camp?

have not heard about that. Funny that so many people think an Edge helps other edges--they should help the OTs more than anyone else.

When I was in my early 20s, this kid wound have been put on a pedestal. Not only did he get the information from an Atlanta coach, he framed the Saints. He is on a different level. Don't get me wrong--it was stupid-- and if I was his dad I would be pissed--but the nerve--the balls---the unbridled disregard for the consequences of the establishment--few people have ever reached this level. But there are others who were more brilliant, but for these examples, we have to go to the Ivey League and MIT. Let's start with MIT: During the 1982 season, seven members of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) managed to bury a weather balloon under the field in Harvard's stadium over a three-week period. The meticulous planning and technologically advanced prank led to those MIT students (safely) disrupting the Harvard/Yale game during the second quarter. The balloon, with "MIT" written all over it, inflated to eight feet before popping. The student newspaper at MIT covered the event with a simple, fitting headline. "Saturday's score: MIT 1, Harvard/Yale 0." -------------------- Yes, another Harvard/Yale game. This time, though, MIT wasn't involved. No, this clever trick in 2004 was the brainchild of two Yale students with the assistance of about 20 others. Disguised as "Harvard Pep Squad" members, the Yale students distribute red and white placards to the Crimson crowd. They assured the fans that "Go Harvard" would be spelled out on the cards. In reality? "WE SUCK" appeared on the Harvard side. --------------------------

About Clowney. He has developed into a leader and his value might be more than his performance would indicate. Young teams need that, which is why character matters. On the other hand, a veteran player can override the coaching--supposedly during meetings, after the coach would say something, players would look at Rodgers for confirmation. Players are in their twenties for the most part and easily influenced.

You should. My brother-in-law is an OSU graduate and a chiropractor in Columbus Ohio. He is active and religious about Buckeye football. I asked him about Ransom when we drafted him--here is his response: "I really like Ransom! Hard hitter, nose for the ball, high football IQ. Didn't get much attention because he was playing opposite Caleb Downs, probably the best DB in the country & a high first round pick next year."

Keep ICE away from him.

Sell Jeremy, Sell. That surgery you have been saving for can happen. Be liberated!!

Who can't embed twats? That is sad.