USA Today: Five reasons to believe in the Carolina Panthers

[sharkkiller]

I really hate the faith put in Ron Rivera. People think he changed his philosophy or something which frankly isn't true. Someone just showed him some relative value chart of going for it on 4th, or going for TDs deep in opposing territories, etc. These things aren't daring or innovative; they're logical. 

 

And even if he's changed on 3-4 plays a game, he's still letting shula call the most horseshit offense in the NFL for the rest of them. 

 

I hope they implode this year and they bring in Gus Malzahn. 

 

 

[Your GFs favorite huddler]

I think a better oline can mask Shula issues, but redzone redzone redzone. My GOD it's a shame that one issue didn't get fixed and it cost us big time in the playoffs. It really was against 3-4 defenses and San Fran happen to be one

Cam, Tolbert, Solid TE in Olsen and now a 6'5 WR in Kelvin....there's no more masking ....if you don't produce in the redzone with that you don't deserve to coach

[LinvilleGorge]

I think a better oline can mask Shula issues, but redzone redzone redzone. My GOD it's a shame that one issue didn't get fixed and it cost us big time in the playoffs. It really was against 3-4 defenses and San Fran happen to be one

 

Well, we had no legit redzone targets and no OL to pound the ball on the ground.  Hopefully we'll have a healthy OL this year plus the addition of Trai Turner and Kelvin Benjamin should help immediately as a RZ target.  As good of a TE as Greg Olsen is, he's definitely not the RZ target you'd expect him to be.

[DaveThePanther2008]

Shula is a dolt and he is still here for one reason, system consistency for our QB. My concern about Rivera may be a little trivial but now he has seemed to embrace this Riverboat nickname. Now is he going to feel like he has to gamble to live up to his new twitter handle? 4th and 1 giveth, 4th and 1 taketh away. I doubt he morphs into some Yosemite Sam shoot from the hip coach, but he should leave the Riverboat nickname stuff with the 2013 season. Using it as a twitter handle could backfire.

I'd love to see Shula shitcanned though.

Sent from my iPhizzle while pooping using CarolinaHizzle

 

I really believed that Shula was going to take what was good in Chudz game.  Add it to his running game mentality and really grow into a good offensive coordinator. 

 

We were at the top of the list in ball control and he gets some credit for that but I truly believe he is afraid to throw the ball too much.  WE had a similar cast of characters at WR and went backwards in number of big plays between 2012 and 2013.

 

I hope the Ramsdell hiring wakes him up.    I don't want Chudz again but I also don't want Davidson all over again either.

 

My support line is very thin for him.  Get is together Shula or hit the road.

[Kakarot]

I worry about Shula, and think this offense is going to be very bad as well. Very worried about our WRs and the Oline. I hope I'm wrong, though.

[top dawg]

I worry about Shula, and think this offense is going to be very bad as well. Very worried about our WRs and the Oline. I hope I'm wrong, though.

 

Come on, man. Can we really be worse than last season...?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't answer that question!

[davos]

I think a lot hinges on Stewart bc if De'Angelo looks like he did last season which was already another year on his belt, we're going to have a lot of -1 to 3 yard runs.  Of course our interior and outside line play will factor in as well.  If they want to be this methodical clock burner offense, our running game will need those 4+ yard carries on a consistent basis.    

 

I'm just as concerned about our running game as our passing.  

[Lumps]

Does Fiz even like the Panthers? I can't tell....what a fuging bitch.

Uh Fiz is a Falcons fan, obviously.

[bigskypanthersguy]

I dunno, I'm hopeful; we're at least trying for the first time in years to fix the serious issues on the team through the draft with recent guards like Silatolu and Turner and the two DTs last year.  I really would have preferred another WR in this year's draft but maybe the chips didn't fall the right way. 

 

Even if there's a stumble this season I still think our future is the best it's been in years--we probably really need a full draft of offensive players this next season, depending on how the draft falls, but it just depends....

[Fiz]

Just curious, but wouldn't being given information and then using that information to change your conservative nature as a head coach be something like changing philosophies? He changed the way he coached last year. That, in itself is a change in philosophy.

depends on what you consider more significant.

 

in infrequent, high leverage situations (4th and 1 in atlanta, for example) he's changed. There's no doubt in my mind if that exact same situation had come up this year, he would have told Cam to just get the yard. Let's say that happens roughly 10 times in the 2014 season (just a made up number, probably around there) and he changed, yes.

 

Now lets consider the rest of the plays. Lots of inside runs, stick throws, safe routes, etc. Little to no rolling Newton out, little creativity, very close to the vest. Sure they led the league in TOP, but in today's NFL that's not nearly the bellcow stat it once was. What is more telling in your opinion? Those few plays where he's calling them differently a little more wide open, or the vast majority that are now called far more conservatively?

 

Compare the offense in 2013 to 2011-2012. It became DRASTICALLY more conservative. There were far better OC choices heading into the season, and the Panthers (and ron rivera) went with the most vanilla, malleable, unthreatening one of the bunch. I'd argue the makeup and style of the current panthers team is a far more accurate reflection of the head coach than it was in his first two years.

 

Lastly, the whole going for it on 4th and short thing isn't necessarily a change in philosophy. I think that's a little too grandiose of a term. Ron rivera simply corrected a fault. There are better plays to call in better situations. Sure, he's become a little better at situational football, but I don't know what that means his philosophy (meaning the way he approaches the entirety of nfl offense) is now different. For example, he hasn't called a timeout at the end of the first half allowing the opposing team to better set up for a field goal since he did it to the one you cheer for in 2012. 

 

Is that a change in timeout philosophy? Of course not, he just stopped fuging up. 

 

The Panthers won in 2013 because they had a fantastic defense, Cam Newton, and had a lot of bounces go their way, not because one guy bought a footballoutsiders account. 

[CRA]

Shula is not only a large problem in the grand scheme of this season, he is THE problem out offense has to overcome.

Rant about stats all you'd like, it's apparent with the eye test what has gone wrong.

Also, I agree with some here, this year is going to be big for Rivera. I fear he may revert back to Fox-esque decision making during the season.

Talent is a bigger issue than Shula. Cast around his QB is one of the weakest in the NFL.

If Chud was our OC last year we would have been 8-8. Shula played to our strength and helped set up the D

The playcalling people want with our weak cast means turnovers and quick punts....and putting your D in bad spots

[Fiz]

Talent is a bigger issue than Shula. Cast around his QB is one of the weakest in the NFL.

If Chud was our OC last year we would have been 8-8. Shula played to our strength and helped set up the D

Played to our strength what the hell? Putting Cam Newton in 3rd and long more than almost any other QB in the league?

[AKPantherFan]

I missed Fiz. Lol.

[Vader704]

Did we bring in another coordinator to help Shula with play calling? Serious question cuz I thought somebody was hired to help