Panthers' Moore, McCown vying for backup QB job

[Rod Butsecks]

(By David Scott, [email protected]) p/ They stand together every day on the Wofford practice fields ndash; starter Jake Delhomme to one side of them, No.4 quarterback Hunter Cantwell on the other./pp/Josh McCown and Matt Moore are competing for one position ndash; backup quarterback for the Carolina Panthers./pp/If the season were to begin today, McCown would probably get the nod. He's been practicing with the second team for much of training camp. But nothing has been settled between these two quarterbacks, each of whom has his own argument to make for being Delhomme's No.2. They'll likely get the majority of the snaps Monday when the Panthers open their preseason with a game against the New York Giants in East Rutherford, N.J./pp/As new quarterbacks coach Rip Scherer said last week: ldquo;I don't think anyone other than Jake is entrenched as the starter.rdquo;/pp/When Scherer puts his quarterbacks through drills ndash; working on their footwork or passing for accuracy ndash; Delhomme is first in line. Then come McCown, Moore and Cantwell, an undrafted rookie out of Louisville./pp/Moore has the longest tenure with the Panthers. He's best remembered for the three games he started at the end of the 2007 season ndash; when Delhomme was hurt and replacements David Carr and Vinnie Testaverde had flopped./pp/Behind Moore ndash; an undrafted rookie whom the Panthers picked up off waivers that season ndash; Carolina won two of those games, with him completing 49-of-79 passes for 564 yards and three touchdowns./pp/Moore was projected to be the Panthers' No.2 in 2008. But he had an ineffective preseason, producing no touchdowns and three interceptions in 26 possessions. Then, in the final preseason game at Pittsburgh, Moore broke his leg. He didn't play again last season./pp/ldquo;There were obviously some mistakes (last preseason), which are going to happen,rdquo; Moore said. ldquo;Those games are good learning experiences, and I'm really looking forward to them this year.rdquo;/pp/When Moore went down, the Panthers immediately traded a draft choice to the Miami Dolphins for McCown. He'd just been traded to Miami from Oakland, and had a legitimate shot at being the Dolphins' starter until they acquired Chad Pennington from the New York Jets./pp/McCown is the only quarterback on the Panthers roster who was drafted ndash; taken by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round in 2002./pp/His credentials are glossier than Moore's: He started 31 games for the Cardinals and Oakland Raiders. He threw for 398 yards for the Cardinals in a game against the Panthers in 2005./pp/But McCown, like Moore, hasn't played much recently since starting nine games for the Raiders in 2007./pp/ldquo;It feels like forever,rdquo; said Moore, who briefly got in two games for the Panthers last season. ldquo;I can't wait to play.rdquo;/pp/McCown and Moore are benefiting from the continuity of playing for offensive coordinator Jeff Davidson for a second season./pp/ldquo;You don't spend the whole offseason trying to flush out one thing and learn something else,rdquo; McCown said. ldquo;So much of the brain space is taken up in lsquo;Let's forget what we called that last year and try to figure out what we call it now.' Not having to do that has been nice.rdquo;/pp/Scherer's emphasis on fundamentals has also helped./pp/ldquo;Rip came in here and worked on the mechanics, from the feet up,rdquo; Moore said. ldquo;It's really helped. You can tell. The drills we do, his little comments after every rep, are beneficial for us. It really reminds us and helps put us in the best situation.rdquo;/pp/It's a good situation that's led to a healthy competition./pp/ldquo;When you're in this thing the way we are, you don't root against anybody,rdquo; said McCown. ldquo;I'm hoping he does well./pp/ldquo;I'm hoping I just do a little bit better.rdquo;/p

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[jasonluckydog]

Moore will be the starter in 2012 when Jake retires...you heard it hear 1st! lol

[panterra]

(By David Scott, [email protected]) p/ They stand together every day on the Wofford practice fields ndash; starter Jake Delhomme to one side of them, No.4 quarterback Hunter Cantwell on the other./pp/Josh McCown and Matt Moore are competing for one position ndash; backup quarterback for the Carolina Panthers./pp/If the season were to begin today, McCown would probably get the nod. He's been practicing with the second team for much of training camp. But nothing has been settled between these two quarterbacks, each of whom has his own argument to make for being Delhomme's No.2. They'll likely get the majority of the snaps Monday when the Panthers open their preseason with a game against the New York Giants in East Rutherford, N.J./pp/As new quarterbacks coach Rip Scherer said last week: ldquo;I don't think anyone other than Jake is entrenched as the starter.rdquo;/pp/When Scherer puts his quarterbacks through drills ndash; working on their footwork or passing for accuracy ndash; Delhomme is first in line. Then come McCown, Moore and Cantwell, an undrafted rookie out of Louisville./pp/Moore has the longest tenure with the Panthers. He's best remembered for the three games he started at the end of the 2007 season ndash; when Delhomme was hurt and replacements David Carr and Vinnie Testaverde had flopped./pp/Behind Moore ndash; an undrafted rookie whom the Panthers picked up off waivers that season ndash; Carolina won two of those games, with him completing 49-of-79 passes for 564 yards and three touchdowns./pp/Moore was projected to be the Panthers' No.2 in 2008. But he had an ineffective preseason, producing no touchdowns and three interceptions in 26 possessions. Then, in the final preseason game at Pittsburgh, Moore broke his leg. He didn't play again last season./pp/ldquo;There were obviously some mistakes (last preseason), which are going to happen,rdquo; Moore said. ldquo;Those games are good learning experiences, and I'm really looking forward to them this year.rdquo;/pp/When Moore went down, the Panthers immediately traded a draft choice to the Miami Dolphins for McCown. He'd just been traded to Miami from Oakland, and had a legitimate shot at being the Dolphins' starter until they acquired Chad Pennington from the New York Jets./pp/McCown is the only quarterback on the Panthers roster who was drafted ndash; taken by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round in 2002./pp/His credentials are glossier than Moore's: He started 31 games for the Cardinals and Oakland Raiders. He threw for 398 yards for the Cardinals in a game against the Panthers in 2005./pp/But McCown, like Moore, hasn't played much recently since starting nine games for the Raiders in 2007./pp/ldquo;It feels like forever,rdquo; said Moore, who briefly got in two games for the Panthers last season. ldquo;I can't wait to play.rdquo;/pp/McCown and Moore are benefiting from the continuity of playing for offensive coordinator Jeff Davidson for a second season./pp/ldquo;You don't spend the whole offseason trying to flush out one thing and learn something else,rdquo; McCown said. ldquo;So much of the brain space is taken up in lsquo;Let's forget what we called that last year and try to figure out what we call it now.' Not having to do that has been nice.rdquo;/pp/Scherer's emphasis on fundamentals has also helped./pp/ldquo;Rip came in here and worked on the mechanics, from the feet up,rdquo; Moore said. ldquo;It's really helped. You can tell. The drills we do, his little comments after every rep, are beneficial for us. It really reminds us and helps put us in the best situation.rdquo;/pp/It's a good situation that's led to a healthy competition./pp/ldquo;When you're in this thing the way we are, you don't root against anybody,rdquo; said McCown. ldquo;I'm hoping he does well./pp/ldquo;I'm hoping I just do a little bit better.rdquo;/p

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McCown signed with the Dolphins as a free agent. He was traded to the Raiders from Detroit and his year at Oakland was the last year of that contract.

You would think that someone who is supposed to be a sports journalist would get their facts right.

[Peppers90 NC]

Man, some of those responses at the bottom of article are dreadful. No wonder other fans thinks our fanbase sucks.

[Fireball77]

Scherer could end up being the MVC (Most Valuable Coach) this year. Love everything I have heard about him.

[SorthNarolina]

Man, some of those responses at the bottom of article are dreadful. No wonder other fans thinks our fanbase sucks.

Yeah it sucks hardcore to pretty much be well informed about anything and then hear ignorance. I just keep my mouth shut when that talk starts because I know so much more I'll sound like a know-it-all. There are only 3 people I can talk to outside of here where I don't feel like I'm talking to a child.

[Smithers]

I like Moore a lot, but he needs to have a better preseason to move to # 2. He had a rough outing last preseason. McCown is at least solid. I think the # 2 QB battle will be one of the best in preseason games.

[kairo84]

Granted Moore doesn't have the experience that jake has, but I think if he gets a chance he'll do great & thanx to that contract extension (dumbass move) he'll get signed by someone else, and we'll get stuck with jake...or worse...another rodney peete.

[Razzy]

McCown is the veteran who has proven he can handle a full season without tanking, so he gets the nod in my mind. Hell, he's surely an upgrade over the two-gloved trainwreck. I like Moore, but he's still a bit of a pet project. I'll enjoy watching him in the preseason though and he is no doubt one of the leagues better #3 QBs....Don't we get an award for that?

[mantal]

Granted Moore doesn't have the experience that jake has, but I think if he gets a chance he'll do great & thanx to that contract extension (dumbass move) he'll get signed by someone else, and we'll get stuck with jake...or worse...another rodney peete.

Not sure you're Huddle material at this point. That post was pretty obtuse and you've already exposed your aggression with only 10 posts...

[kairo84]

Not sure you're Huddle material at this point. That post was pretty obtuse and you've already exposed your aggression with only 10 posts...

Hows this for obtuse...bite me.