Analyzing Sports Illustrated - the WORST NFC South Preview Ever

[KB_fan]

I'm not usually one to get too caught up in "the national media hate us" meme but today is an exception, because I've just read the worst piece of football "journalism" ever, one that is just DRIPPING with scorn for the Panthers and doesn't miss an opportunity to dis us.

Am I exaggerating?  You be the judge... but it was REALLY FUN to fisk this article (i.e. demolish it line by line), and this will make AWESOME bulletin board material for our players, coaches and front office.  So, thanks at least for that SI.  You've just given us a lot of added motivation to prove the "haters" wrong.

The article is skewed to attack the Panthers whenever possible, just because we were not "flashy" enough in the off-season and didn't throw mega money around to re-create a team that "won" the division last year with a losing record.  Let me provide just 1 example of the 9 comments they make about the Panthers.

Oddly enough, it hasn’t been long since it took a great team to make the postseason in the NFC South. In 2011, the Saints won 13 games, the Falcons 10, both making the playoffs, and in '10 the South boasted three double-digit win teams; the 10–6 Bucs missed the postseason entirely. Consider that squad, quarterbacked by Josh Freeman and with LeGarrette Blount and Mike Williams powering the offense. It would likely have pushed the 2014 Panthers out of the playoffs.

[2010 Bucs > 2014 Panthers?  I don’t know.  I didn’t watch much football in 2010.  So I’ll let that pass.  But why go back to 2010 or 2011 to talk about “great teams” and multiple teams with “double digit wins” in the division?  Because Carolina was not great in those years?  It seems to me you need to look no further back than 2013.  Um, 1 year prior?  Panthers 12- 4; New Orleans 11-5.  Both in the playoffs.  This is where the bias most clearly shows.  Yeah, let’s ignore 2013 when the Panthers had an amazing season, tied for 2^nd most wins in the entire NFC.  Clearly it was just because the division sucked. Wow.  So. Much. Hate.]

 

You can read my full analysis here:

 

[pepaw]

Wow, that is depressing.  Thanks for taking the time to research that. 

[SOJA]

lolol completely ignoring 2013 

[dpm0409]

Unfortunately this will never change until we consistently win our division WITH respectable records in the process.  It's BS, but that's the national media for ya.

[KB_fan]

Yeah, the article is so bad it's actually incredibly funny.  I had a lot of fun demolishing it.

[Snake]

Unfortunately this will never change. 

 

 

Fixed it for ya.  We are back to back Champs yet every year no matter the year or wins we get picked to be in the bottom of the division. 

[CoastalCat]

So......link?

[chknwing]

 

[KB_fan]

So......link?

Here you go @CoastalCat

http://www.si.com/nfl/2015/08/12/nfl-training-camp-nfc-south-preview-falcons-saints-buccaneers

the link was included in my blog entry.  I actually intentionally didn't include it here because I'm not sure I want SI to get the clicks...

Look closely at the link itself.  Notice anything?  NFC South Preview.  Falcons. Saints. Bucaneers.

It tells you all you need to know.  SI considers the Panthers not worth discussing.  Period.

[Pox 08]

SI is sort of like a rival fan.       They are emotional and try to disguise it as logic..        If we keep doing better than they predict,  they will use their little mind as a time machine and retreat back to a happy time (for them),  where the Panthers were the worst team in the division...and the league.          SI probably spends a lot of time jacking off when it thinks back to 2010.

[juliosantos]

sports il hates the panthers 

[KB_fan]

[I just posted this comment on the full blog entry and thought it worth posting here too:]

I suppose I perhaps should make one other thing clear for those who don't read the full original article.  I don't think I would have cared so much about this article or taken the time to fisk it if they'd actually presented a case about how the Panthers did not improve enough during the offseason.  If they'd provided information and analyzed what we did or did not do, (JUST AS THEY DID for the other three teams in the division) it wouldn't have been a big deal whether or not what they said was reasonable.

But that's what's so truly absurd.  This is not a quick blog entry.  This is a 2600+ word feature, an "NFC SOUTH PREVIEW" featured as the lead article on the front page when I checked out SI this morning.  They provide detailed sections on each of the other 3 teams with write ups of off-season work done to improve in 2015.  Yet there's NOTHING more about the Panthers than what I've copied above [in the blog entry].  Really.  NOTHING.  In this article, we only exist to be belittled. 

[davos]

It's been this way ever since they predicted us to go all the way in 2005 or whenever that was. 

[dpm0409]

Fixed it for ya.  We are back to back Champs yet every year no matter the year or wins we get picked to be in the bottom of the division. 

Let's just say I try to have the glass half full type attitude and even with that being said, I'm not going to argue, haha