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Would You Agree We May Be Fielding Our Best Overall Team This Year?

Saca312

By Saca312,
in Carolina Panthers

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Saca312 Experienced

Saca312

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If there was ever a time to be a Panthers fan, it would be now.

Being completely honest, I think this may be the most balanced and deadly team we've ever fielded. Defense is a sure lock in the top 5 at this rate, and our offense bursts of potential.

Defensively, our front seven is stacked. Our DTs are one of the deepest and best rotation in the league, with everyone being a monster from Short, Star, Butler, to Love. 

Our defensive ends are all solid throughout the whole rotation. Addison, Peppers, ans Johnson are solid starters who still impact in the run/pass rushing game, with Horton being a run stuffing nightmare and Hall bursting with youthful potential. 

Our linebackers are the deepest and best in the league. Luke, TD, and Shaq make up one of the fiercest 4-3 LB starters the league's ever seen. 

Our secondary may very well be the best we've ever had. Worley and Bradberry both have made strides and will be solid next year. Kurt Coleman and Mike Adams make up a good starting safety duo, and Captain Munnerlyn/a healthy Corn Elder make up solid nickels/depth outside. When healthy, this will be a playmaking juggernaut.

I'll eat crow if we aren't top 5 next year when healthy. 

Offensively, we have Cam Newton and co. For the first time in his career, he has three receivers who can release fast at the line of scrimmage, get lots of separation, and impact the short game/deep game at the same time. Two of those are also excellent runners (specifically McCaffrey) and one of them with insanely good speed (Samuel when healthy). 

TE Greg Olsen is a top 3 TE, and our WRs don't look half bad. Sure, we lack a true #1 WR, but we have role-playing guys everywhere who can create big mismatches. Funchess still has WR1 potential at such a young age, and KB could be a really good possession receiver when motivated. Lots of potential for this group.

Our offensive line has solid starters (one of the NFL's best interior too; Matt Kalil questionable, but training camp reports say good things) with decent depth. We're in a pretty good position, with only questions at LT for the most part.

FB Young, Power RB Stewart, RB/WR McCaffrey, WR/RB Samuel, and QB/RB Cam Newton make up a very deadly ground game on paper. McCaffrey hype is through the roof, and this group can scare defensive coordinators.

If our offense meets its potential, I'd say it could be a top 5 group too. This offense could theoretically be one of the scariest option offenses in the league and look to create mismatches on every play. I'm not guaranteeing it will happen, but the potential is there for us to dominate.

If anything, Cam Newton should have his best completion percentage this year with competent weapons around him, and we will be better than 2016 with a healthy Samuel/deep threat.

I'm excited for this year. This team could make a Superbowl run and has the weapons needed to avoid the mistakes we made in 2015.

So, I think in terms of balance and our team as a whole, this could be our best overall team ever. And I expect big things from this group.

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The Lobo Grand Master

The Lobo

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On paper, this team is legit. Whether they pan out is another story. To me, KB is still sort of a question mark along with funchess in terms of consistency. The OL will be a question mark, not because I think they are bad, we just don't know how Matt Kalil will perform. I am optimistic about him though. 

Staying healthy is key (as it is every year)

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Saca312 Experienced

Saca312

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1 minute ago, The Lobo said:

On paper, this team is legit. Whether they pan out is another story. To me, KB is still sort of a question mark along with funchess in terms of consistency. The OL will be a question mark, not because I think they are bad, we just don't know how Matt Kalil will perform. I am optimistic about him though. 

Staying healthy is key (as it is every year)

Good points. Partly why I'm a bit weary on saying for sure our offense will dominate. Lots of potential, but lots of stuff unproven.

Defensively, only scenario I see of us being bad is through injury. Otherwise we're top 5 for sure.

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Burnout189 Mentor

Burnout189

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Agreed that this team could be one of if not the best teams the Panthers have ever fielded, but that is yet too be seen. I will say that the excitement potential this teams has and their possibilities are extremely great if capitalized on. Regardless, this should be a very fun season.

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Pantha-kun Mentor

Pantha-kun

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There are too many uncertainties on offense, and you're not accounting for injuries and missed kicks in close games , two factors that wrecked us badly last season. 

People were predicting us to return to the SB after last season and we proceeded to go 6-10. I strongly disagree. 

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Saca312 Experienced

Saca312

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3 minutes ago, Camp Fodder said:

Defensively?  Maybe

Offensively?  Not even close

Offensively, this should be the best unit we've ever got for Cam, which is why I say this could be the best overall when accounting balance for both offense and defense. We have multiple options for short, intermediate, and deep passes on offense, which is what Cam never really had. 

We'll see how it goes. 

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      something to feel good about in the offseason..."could be something special brewing in Carolina"

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      By tukafan21 · Posted

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