A handful of solid Panthers articles at MMQB, including oral history of '95 season

[KB_fan]

There are just WAY WAY too many articles about the Panthers being written this week to possibly read them all.  I haven't even come close, but just came across a few articles at MMQB that look like they may be worthwhile reading if only I could find the time.

1.  An Oral History of the Panthers' First Season in 1995

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/02/03/nfl-oral-history-1995-carolina-panthers

On the drafting of Collins:
 

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Bill Polian: We went in thinking we would be happy with either Collins or McNair. We had some concern with Steve because we felt he had a slightly longer learning curve because of the level of competition [out of I-AA Alcorn State]. As we went through the process, we presumed that one of the two QBs would go to Tennessee at 3. So that told us you can’t go any further down than No. 5 and feel good about it. [Bengals owner] Mike Brown called, so it was pretty easy when they made the offer. We made the trade and kind of sweated it out.

The Bengals traded up with Carolina and took running back Ki-Jana Carter with the No. 1 overall. (Whoops.) Jacksonville took left tackle Tony Boselli with the second pick. McNair went third, to the Oilers, and the Panthers got their quarterback at No. 5.

Kerry Collins: Right before it happened, we knew what was going to happen. That was Bill Polian being a mastermind. After that I just kind of jumped into their offseason program. I can remember going down there right after the draft and feeling the excitement that the fans had.

Bill Polian: We were satisfied after all the scouting. Joe Paterno loved him. He said he had some growing up to do but he’s a gamer, intelligent, will work at it, and really cares about football.

 

 

I loved this section on the criticism the team was getting and how there was the emphasis on chemistry & character.  Sounds familiar 21 years later....
 

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April 24, 1995 — Forget the run-and-shoot offense. Despite all those raves from team executives about how well Carolina did in its first NFL draft, the Panthers’ attack this year will be more like run and hide. … The Panthers can't escape the woes of an expansion team. There is inexperience, there are castoffs and veterans getting close to retirement, and there is the lack of cohesion inherent in a team with players coming in from different systems. — Pete Iacobelli, Associated Press

 

 

Photo: George Rose/Getty Images

Willie Green.

 

Willie Green: One of the great things that Mr. Richardson did was, he invited Howard Griffith, Sam Mills, Mark Carrier, Greg Kragen and me down to his house in Spartanburg for a dinner cooked by his wife before training camp. And he said, “Listen, this is your team. You’re going to be treated like adults.” He asked us what we needed as leaders. I don’t think there was much that we asked for, but the important thing was that he had that respect for our input.

Frank Reich: When they were assembling the roster, there was a very big emphasis on the character and chemistry of the team. They were very selective about getting great leaders. Sam Mills is the first guy that comes to mind.

Special teams ace Dwight Stone: I was excited for the idea of no egos on the roster. Everybody was given a job, and you knew what your job was.

Linebacker Carlton Bailey: You really didn’t know anybody. There were guys who were expected to be starters who had only been special-teamers in the past.

Wide receiver Derrick Moore: But we were all on the same page. There were no egos. We were all trying to establish something. We really wanted this to work. I think we all wanted to prove we could be competitive in our first year.

 

there's MUCH MUCH more.... it's a LONG article.  Maybe bookmark this for post superbowl off-season reading when you're in need of a Panthers' fix.

[KB_fan]

2nd article:

Cam Newton: Son of Blinn

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/02/02/cam-newton-carolina-panthers-blinn-college-nfl-super-bowl-50

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A lost 20-year-old quarterback arrived at a small Texas junior college in 2009 and a future NFL superstar left a year later. We visited the Brenham campus to find out how washing jerseys, mooing cows and painting bleachers transformed Cam Newton into the football player he is today

I personally know virtually nothing about Cam's year at Blinn, so this looks to be an interesting read.  (Not read it yet.... not enough time today for all this reading.)

[KB_fan]

3rd article:

Panthers Retread Superheros:

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/02/02/nfl-super-bowl-50-panthers-free-agents-key-positions

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While Carolina touts its camaraderie, the Panthers’ success is just as much down to the franchise's ability to identify and bring in time-tested veterans from other teams—eight in all in key positions this season—who fit their schemes and their culture

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It’s easy—and rational—to attribute Carolina’s success to the Cam Newtons and the Luke Kuechlys. Indeed, this team has a handful of stars playing the most important positions within its scheme. But as GM Dave Gettleman said at media night on Monday, “The NFL salary cap does not allow you to sign Pro Bowlers at every position.”

Gettleman was speaking to the importance of drafting and developing talent within your organization, but his point also applies to the veteran market, where he and his staff have brought in an unusually high number of important players through free agency or trade. Five of Carolina’s regular defensive contributors are on at least their third NFL team: defensive end Jared Allen; nickelback Cortland Finnegan; cornerback Robert McClain; safety Kurt Coleman; and defensive tackle Dwan Edwards. Plus, longtime Bear Charles Tillman signed in free agency this past offseason, and two years ago ex-Saint Roman Harper jumped aboard. All of these men came cheap because they were believed to be on the downside of their careers.

There are three other key guys on offense who are on at least their third team: left tackle Michael Oher and wide receivers Jerricho Cotchery and Ted Ginn Jr. In all, that’s eight veteran contributors in Carolina’s lineup. So why all the success with retreads?

 

In talking about Coleman's fit, and Oher's fit due to their past relationships with McDermott and Matsko, thus knowing our schemes, Andy Benoit goes on to say:
 

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In the bottom-line world of pro football, player-coach relationships really only matter to whatever extent it translates into on-field success. Which is why, as Cotchery suggested, the scheme factors so heavily into this equation. Carolina’s offensive identity is very distinct: It’s a multipronged run-based approach that uses heavy personnel and miscellaneous move-blockers to set up misdirection runs and downfield passes. There’s a very specific definition for which types of players work in an approach like this.

It’s even truer on defense. The Panthers play a lot of classic Cover 3 and Cover 2 zones. Their blitzes are more complex but not necessarily novel. Most of them come off the pages of the late Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson’s book, which has been copied around the league, especially by Johnson’s longtime protégé McDermott.

 

 

[cbarrier90]

Settled for Collins instead of getting McNair. Ugh.

At least we eventually wound up with McNair 2.0.

[KB_fan]

Finally, two more aticles at MMQB:

Peter King's reflection on Super Bowl week so far...

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/02/03/peter-king-super-bowl-50-nfl-mailbag-cam-newton-johnny-manziel-goodell-psi-measurements

Includes these comments about Cam:

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Cam Newton is handling himself well here. Most of the assembled media was waiting to see if Newton would use this week as a platform for something, perhaps about the state of race relations or black quarterbacks in football, on the heels of his remarks on the topic last week. And I don’t say this because he basically has buried the topic. I say it because he has been engaging and forthright in his two long appearances with the media here, and because he refuses to be drawn into a discussion about race—at least right now. I think most people think whatever the Cam controversy is, it’s not about the state of black quarterbacks. It’s more about the state of his on-field exuberance. “I don’t even want to touch on the topic of black quarterback,” Newton said in San Jose on Tuesday. “I don’t think I should be labeled just a black quarterback, because it’s bigger things in this sport that need to be accomplished. I think we shattered that a long time ago.” He’s right. When Doug Williams, 28 years ago, became the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl, that was a historic occasion. This year, not so much. This is the fourth straight year with a black quarterback (Colin Kaepernick, Russell Wilson, Wilson again, and Newton) starting in the game. And as Newton said when pressed on the topic of stereotypes for black quarterbacks—man, who on earth is still stereotyping black quarterbacks three decades after Williams?—“It’s not an issue. It’s an issue for you.” I’m all for making issues of things that deserve to be issues, but the issue of whether black men can play quarterback jumped the shark years ago.

 

Also, there's a look at Cam's contract and Peyton's contract:

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/02/03/peyton-manning-cam-newton-contracts-nfl-super-bowl-50

 

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Cam’s Wait for Cash

At this time last year, Newton had completed the four-year rookie contract he received as the first overall pick in the 2011 draft. Newton was the first pick in the new CBA era that drastically reduced first-round contracts, especially at the top. While no one was crying poverty for Newton, his deal—$21 million over four years—paled in comparison to the $50 million (in guarantees alone) received by the previous year’s top pick, Sam Bradford.

The Panthers then used their CBA license to apply a fifth-year option on Newton, securing his 2015 rights at a one-year number of $14.67 million. While Newton did not receive a new deal until the eve of his fifth season, several other quarterbacks were secured with extensions three years into their careers (the first point the CBA allows renegotiations). The Dolphins, Bengals, 49ers and Seahawks all negotiated extensions for their quarterbacks—Ryan Tannehill, Andy Dalton, Colin Kaepernick and Russell Wilson—before their fourth season.

Newton’s $31 million in earnings this year—between salary and bonuses—is impressive, yet it’s the same amount Russell Wilson received in his renegotiated contract after three, not four, years in the league. And while Newton was scheduled to make $14.67 million this year per his option year salary, Wilson was only scheduled to make $1.5 million, a $13 million gap.

Although Newton’s contract falls in line with other top-tier quarterback extensions in recent years, one has to wonder (1) why the Panthers took so long to reward him, especially compared to similarly situated players; and (2) as the clear regular-season MVP, with the salary cap set to rise significantly in coming years, when will his contract addressed again?

 

I found that question about "why it took the Panthers so long?" really annoying.  Perhaps you might have noticed we were in salary cap hell....  Anyone?

[B.BERSIN]

Really a great read, appreciate it!

[JccOldTime23]

Thanks for this. The '95 article is excellent. I look forward to the rest.

[TN05]

2 hours ago, cbarrier90 said:

Settled for Collins instead of getting McNair. Ugh.

At least we eventually wound up with McNair 2.0.

Could have been worse... we could have picked Ki-Jana Carter.

Still crazy how we had three first round picks and blew all of them.

[w280sax]

Bill Barnwell article on espn is a really thorough preview.  I enjoyed it.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/14705931/denver-best-defense-football-facing-attack-yet-face-nfl

[Mr. Scot]

Mentions of Polian always take me back to the day we drafted Tshimanga Biakabutuka.

Polian was asked by an ESPN reporter "Any concerns about his durability?"

His answer, "None."

[Ricky Spanish]

1 hour ago, w280sax said:

Bill Barnwell article on espn is a really thorough preview.  I enjoyed it.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/14705931/denver-best-defense-football-facing-attack-yet-face-nfl

That was a GREAT write up about the strengths and weaknesses of both teams and how they match up with each other. I highly recommend it. 

[countryboi]

40 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

Mentions of Polian always take me back to the day we drafted Tshimanga Biakabutuka.

Polian was asked by an ESPN reporter "Any concerns about his durability?"

His answer, "None."

I always wanted to Biakabutuka to do well but his running style was just not conducive to a long career in the NFL. 

[KillerKat]

55 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

Mentions of Polian always take me back to the day we drafted Tshimanga Biakabutuka.

Polian was asked by an ESPN reporter "Any concerns about his durability?"

His answer, "None."

Hey can you clear your inbox? it says you can't receive messages.

[Mr. Scot]

23 minutes ago, KillerKat said:

Hey can you clear your inbox? it says you can't receive messages.

Cleared some room.