Anderson wasn't good enough for Carolina

[MasterAwesome]

1 hour ago, Cdw said:

Yes, if used properly.  Had we perhaps sit a hurt Cam, put in a back up and relied heavily on a two headed rushing attack, yeah I could see a few more wins.  We wernt exactly playing many juggernaugts in that 7 game streak.

You could argue that sitting a hurt Cam alone would’ve netted us a few more wins...not sure why you’re bringing that up to answer whether CJ Anderson would’ve won us more games. Clearly Rivera had no interest in sitting Cam while we were in playoff contention; having CJ Anderson wasn’t going to change that part of our season.

[Jangler]

clearly he was a shitty tipper.

[Cdw]

10 minutes ago, MasterAwesome said:

You could argue that sitting a hurt Cam alone would’ve netted us a few more wins...not sure why you’re bringing that up to answer whether CJ Anderson would’ve won us more games. Clearly Rivera had no interest in sitting Cam while we were in playoff contention; having CJ Anderson wasn’t going to change that part of our season.

Well, youre right, having CJ wasnt going to change Rivera not sitting Cam.  In my hypothesizing how CJ could have helped us win more games I wasnt taking into account Riveras other bad decisions.  But the point was, relying on CJ and CMC instead of the backup could have won games.

But, I can also easily see winning a couple more games while still trotting hurt Cam out there if we were relying heavily upon a two headed rushing attack. So, the point still stands - CJ could have helped us win more games.

[beastson]

2 hours ago, je1005 said:

It was a horrible idea at the time, and that belief has been validated for several weeks now.

Tonight was the crescendo.

Was it as horrible as him sitting on the bench doing nothing for weeks?

[Mr. Scot]

From USA Today's Panthers Wire...

CJ Anderson's third straight big game raises questions about the Panthers

C.J. Anderson could not get on the field for the Panthers during his short time with the team. Instead of rotating running backs like a normal NFL team, they preferred to play Christian McCaffrey practically every snap, so they let Anderson walk in the middle of the season.

As magnificent as McCaffrey’s 2018 campaign was, Carolina’s loss has been the Rams’ gain. After a brief layover in Oakland, Anderson landed in Los Angeles and immediately stepped into a starring role with Todd Gurley out. He totaled 299 rushing yards and two touchdowns in LA’s last two games of the season. Anderson’s hot streak has now continued into the playoffs. Even though the Rams now have a healthy Gurley, they put Anderson to excellent use in their divisional round win over the Cowboys.

In the end, Anderson finished the game with 123 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries.

This raises more questions about why the Panthers decided to let Anderson walk, when he could have served as one of the league’s better backups behind McCaffrey at a reasonable price.

[LegioX]

6 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

From USA Today's Panthers Wire...

CJ Anderson's third straight big game raises questions about the Panthers

 

 

and...this is why im not watching a single game next season. This coaching staff is the worse.

[Cdw]

9 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

This raises more questions about why the Panthers decided to let Anderson walk, when he could have served as one of the league’s better backups behind McCaffrey at a reasonable price.

What these folks dont understand is.... we needed to cut CJ loose.... how else were we gonna get a look at that CAP guy.....

[Jmac]

7 hours ago, KillerKat said:

Did I really just read an argument in Rivera's favor to cut CJ was "because we have holes everywhere else"? So apparently kids, if your football team has too many holes, you might as well cut every other exceptional player you have. Sounds legit. Jesus Christ, the huddle is full of morons.

Agreed.... when you have a team consisting of old over the hill players and JAG's,  is it a smart move to cut a legit power back to compliment the running game?

The reasoning on this board is ridiculous.

[Jeremy Igo]

The Panthers would have been happy to have kept CJ in a backup role if CJ would have been happy with it. However, he was not and he was very verbal and weird about it. So, they let him seek greener pastures, which he did.

[ellis]

6 minutes ago, Jeremy Igo said:

The Panthers would have been happy to have kept CJ in a backup role if CJ would have been happy with it. However, he was not and he was very verbal and weird about it. So, they let him seek greener pastures, which he did.

Heard some of that, in which case: great signing and superb work vetting that one out. 

Either way, Hurney done crapped his pants on this one.

[Mr. Scot]

13 minutes ago, Jeremy Igo said:

The Panthers would have been happy to have kept CJ in a backup role if CJ would have been happy with it. However, he was not and he was very verbal and weird about it. So, they let him seek greener pastures, which he did.

Which was an incredibly stupid decision.

You don't let a good backup go just because he's unhappy being a backup, even if he's behaving badly. That hurts your team's depth and rewards his bad behavior.

If Rivera couldn't handle him being upset, it's just another example of him being a weakling.

What makes it even worse, he was right. They should have been using him more. His performance with yhe Rams has made that clear.

[ellis]

The larger point would be most offenses don’t utilize their tailback on every single offensive snap down the stretch. The utilization of a veteran back with a power build had been a staple of Carolina’s highly potent rushing attack for much of Rivera’s tenure. CMC averaged 5.0 ypc, and he did get 1000. But he only had 20+ carries two times. He carried the ball LESS in the final month than he had most of the season. He averaged 10 YPC against Tampa, but was only given 10 carries. 

Of course 22 is capable. Of course he had a superb year. But playing him for that many snaps is a terrible approach. 

[ellis]

The staff did a poor job managing his expectations, and an equally poor job putting him in a position to contribute.

Anderson had a valid gripe. They never gave him a chance to provide a change-up. The few times they did, it worked very well.

All of it defies logic.

[Jeremy Igo]

Two other teams that could not offer him the reps he wanted also released him after the Panthers. The Rams are the only ones that could give him what he wanted, so it's worked out.