J. Bettis' comments on Fox & Delhomme

[Nu Guns]

Someone needs to lose their job in Carolina. I was in Las Vegas for an event last weekend, and on Sunday I went to the best possible place to catch every game: a sportsbook. And of the nine games playing across those big screens early in the day, I couldn't keep my eye off of one thing: Jake Delhomme. I saw a quarterback who should not be starting on any NFL team. The way he's played his past two games -- five interceptions against the Cardinals in the playoffs; four yesterday against the Eagles -- I have to think this guy is just done. Toast. And if Jake Delhomme is done, John Fox is going to get fired.

Fox saw that playoff game last year firsthand. He had an entire offseason to evaluate his passers. And he didn't take the necessary steps to ensure the franchise's success down the line. Whether it was a free agent -- Matt Cassell, Sage Rosenfels, Michael Vick -- or even a rookie in the draft, he didn't demand a quarterback to challenge Delhomme.

Instead, the Panthers gave Delhomme a five-year contract extension, and now they don't have anyone else who can compete for the position. Fox went through the whole darn depth chart yesterday and didn't see a positive thing from anyone.

To me, that all goes on the coach. Coaches live and die by their quarterbacks, and Fox is riding Jake Delhomme to his grave. If he wants to save his job, he ought to be looking for options, whether it be a veteran who got released in the preseason or someone in a trade. Maybe it's time to call Minnesota about one of its backups.

Look at the Panthers' schedule. They have the Cowboys, Redskins and Buccaneers coming up: three losable games. If they go 0-4, I would fire John Fox. He's stuck with Jake Delhomme, who has repeatedly shown that he's not an elite quarterback. He's provided himself no alternatives. Without a huge turnaround, I think this is the end of the road for John Fox.

The truth hurts

[SMACKDAB]

The truth hurts

To a certain extent in this case....but not me. I for one am glad we are getting attention even if it is this kind.

I am glad we aren't the only ones that are noticing what is going on around here is what I am saying.

:cheers2:

Flame away Huddle.............

[unicar15]

Its not often that I agree with one of the illiterate retards that take to the mike after their football career but Bettis is exactly right. If you go up and down our roster we are every bit as talented IF NOT MORE talented than every team in the NFC. We should NEVER get beat like we did against the Cards and the Eagles.

John Fox is a good coach. But his decision to keep Delhomme with nobody behind him to take the helm was the worst decision of his career. He has made his bed with JD and he has essentially said "Ok I'm going down with the ship if this fails." These are decisions that coaches make and have to live with. Fox will get hired by someone else and he knows it...

If Fox had the balls to go out and develop a legitimately talented starting QB then he would be a great coach to continue to lead us...but he doesn't.

[Nu Guns]

To a certain extent in this case....but not me. I for one am glad we are getting attention even if it is this kind.

I am glad we aren't the only ones that are noticing what is going on around here is what I am saying.

:cheers2:

Flame away Huddle.............

Yes, the more press the better!! This can only help because Hurney and Fox always ignore the people of Charlotte and the surrounding areas.:banghead:

Public heat on a national scale will hold them to the fire

[rippadonn]

Yes, the more press the better!! This can only help because Hurney and Fox always ignore the people of Charlotte and the surrounding areas.:banghead:

Public heat on a national scale will hold them to the fire

:yesnod: Although I'm leaning toward blaming the coaching staff more for the loss (Jake called out the blitzes nobody could pick them up). After the playoff game I felt sure we were bringing in a QB to challenge Jake at camp. I did say 'challenge'. I still don't think Jake is as bad as he looks. Our scheme and ability to adjust to blitzes looks more troubling.

As a fan base we've been screaming for a challenger at QB for years. Are we just sooo stupid and Fox and co. are soooo smart they can ignore fan, pundit, expert and nube alike? I don't think so. Same goes for the Bobcats.

[rippadonn]

You can't continue to ignore the people who buy your tickets PANTHERS/BOBCATS!

[Darth Bobo]

More than once, Fox has been criticized for being too loyal to fading/inadequate players. Sometimes the criticism is fair and objective, sometimes it is shortsighted and unfair. Everyone, Jerome Bettis included, thinks they know the difference, yet none of us knows what Fox knows.

But for the sake of argument, let's sport some 20/20 hindsight vision. Dan Morgan, Mike Rucker, Mike Minter all stayed longer than they ought to have, even though the peanut gallery knew their time had come and gone.

However, in each of those cases, the players were fan favorites. Though Fox waited too long to cut them, he admirably honored and protected fan favorites, the face, and the identity of the franchise. It wasn't until it was glaringly obvious to most fans, that he let them go. Some fans respect that kind of loyalty, others could care less. Fox et al have to make their own personal judgment call about who we are, and what we want from the Panthers organization as fans, particularly from a professional sport in a rich collegiate sport state. Has our fan experience not demonstrated that the current owners and staff make high profile personnel decisions based on what they think will keep Carolina fans and their money flowing into the stadium? I think it does.

I think what makes the Delhomme decision less understandable to the nations football experts, is that unlike other washed-out fan favorites, Delhomme was given a 5 year extension with ~20 million in guaranteed money.

To outsiders, that might seem overly-generous, but the PAnthers have found themselves near the salary cap consistently, and they relied on Delhomme to defer money several times in his career to later dates through several contract restructures. Allowing him to finally get some guaranteed money was the honorable thing to do, though arguably not the best cutthroat vector to victory.

Perhaps then, the mistake isn't in keeping Delhomme, or in finally paying him healthy guaranteed money, but specifically the total amount, and for the number of years the contract was given. The devil in that case, is in the contract details.

So, why specifically was the Panthers organization motivated to give Delhomme this last contract? What were the factors? Previously underpaid? Check. Close to 2009 salary cap? Check. Unprecedented salary being paid to another player? Check.

Not to blame it on Peppers, because I do not know if his $16.7m contract in one year actually forced the Panthers to renegotiate Delhomme's, but I imagine that it must have contributed significantly. When else has the Panther's paid a comparable one year premium for a single player in franchise history?

Seems to me that the Peppers contract was a slippery slope. The uncertainty at DE "forced" us to move on Everette Brown at the cost of next years first. But, that forfeit makes a little more sense when we probably couldn't fit into our salary cap next year afford anyway(and keep Peppers). To create a working margin for other FA's and draftees, we accepted more risk than we normally might and apparently overpaid for Delhomme. Then, we lost a key player in another position (Maake) like so many teams do in the preseason, and didn't have the cash or time to replace him.

I am not optimistic. Someone probably is going to lose their job, and guess what? Delhomme is the most secure of the three. (Delhomme, Peppers, Fox) Afterall, his money is guaranteed.

[KatsAzz]

Someone needs to lose their job in Carolina. I was in Las Vegas for an event last weekend, and on Sunday I went to the best possible place to catch every game: a sportsbook. And of the nine games playing across those big screens early in the day, I couldn't keep my eye off of one thing: Jake Delhomme. I saw a quarterback who should not be starting on any NFL team. The way he's played his past two games -- five interceptions against the Cardinals in the playoffs; four yesterday against the Eagles -- I have to think this guy is just done. Toast. And if Jake Delhomme is done, John Fox is going to get fired.

Fox saw that playoff game last year firsthand. He had an entire offseason to evaluate his passers. And he didn't take the necessary steps to ensure the franchise's success down the line. Whether it was a free agent -- Matt Cassell, Sage Rosenfels, Michael Vick -- or even a rookie in the draft, he didn't demand a quarterback to challenge Delhomme.

Instead, the Panthers gave Delhomme a five-year contract extension, and now they don't have anyone else who can compete for the position. Fox went through the whole darn depth chart yesterday and didn't see a positive thing from anyone.

To me, that all goes on the coach. Coaches live and die by their quarterbacks, and Fox is riding Jake Delhomme to his grave. If he wants to save his job, he ought to be looking for options, whether it be a veteran who got released in the preseason or someone in a trade. Maybe it's time to call Minnesota about one of its backups.

Look at the Panthers' schedule. They have the Cowboys, Redskins and Buccaneers coming up: three losable games. If they go 0-4, I would fire John Fox. He's stuck with Jake Delhomme, who has repeatedly shown that he's not an elite quarterback. He's provided himself no alternatives. Without a huge turnaround, I think this is the end of the road for John Fox.

LOL This is right on target but give us a link please.

[Nu Guns]

You can't continue to ignore the people who buy your tickets PANTHERS/BOBCATS!

Amen