The Ravens are coming, The Ravens are coming

[frankw]

6 hours ago, Tinamedina said:

I get it, but it's always a possibility of getting hit. It just seems they are handling him with kids gloves. Hes 3 year now 4th year starter, training wheels should have been off by now.

Jimmy Clausen wasn't even coddled like this.

[hepcat]

I don’t like resting starters on a team with a bunch of young players that have accomplished literally nothing at the NFL level. There’s maybe 2-3 players on the team that are veterans that came from other teams that can rest. But the young guys need playing time. Last year was different because none of the teams had a preseason. Now everyone is getting one again. 

I hope these practices get the team ready like a game would. 

[ThPantherFan]

13 hours ago, Udogg said:

If he has PTSD from the Jets O-line, then maybe.

I hope he doesn't

[ThPantherFan]

13 hours ago, Ace420 said:

I'm glad that we are playing good teams in preseason this year. Not only is our young team learning how playoff teams conduct business, but Coach Rhule is learning too. 

Playing down to your competition doesn't make you better.

I like this approach.

[ThPantherFan]

13 hours ago, kungfoodude said:

I don't think this will necessarily pay off in a noticeable way this season but I think it will pay off in the coming seasons. 

I totally agree.  Practice is practice and in no way will be like game day, however, it will give you a different sense on how other team players scheme (to a point).  Better to practice other teams than just your own team.

[ThPantherFan]

13 hours ago, rippadonn said:

Sam is going to get hit.

Most definitely will get hit.  I think protecting the QB during practice is the best thing.  

[ThPantherFan]

12 hours ago, TheSpecialJuan said:

Going up against one of the best teams the NFL will be good for such a young team as the Panthers 

Well said.

[Moo Daeng]

10 hours ago, CashNewton22 said:

Most of the people that are complaining about Darnold not playing don’t really care about him taking live reps etc….they’re just complaining  because they can’t see how he looks themselves. I definitely get it but we’ve waited months to see our new QB we can wait 10 more days (Rhule said he’s definitely playing the Steelers game) I’m absolutely positive you can find another position to be worried about instead of QB. 

The Twitterverse wants something to Tweet about. That's literally the only thing the media is concerned with at least. Make their work easier. 

 

[Khyber53]

12 hours ago, stbugs said:

Man, is it really too hard to think that instead of the coaches thinking they need to protect his delicate psyche, the coaches might just want to get him through camp and pre-season without risking him getting hit and injured? I think it’s that simple, not worth the risk especially with another real game. The Darnold trial run in 2021 doesn’t work well with a pre-season injury and right now they are shuffling the poo out of the OL making it a higher chance.

There's a metric f-ton of truth to this. An injury to Darnold in pre-season (happened with Cam, remember) would leave the Darnold question unanswered for who knows how long. And even if he did come back mid-season there'd be a built in excuse if he didn't live up to expectations.

Right now, there's no reason really to not trot Walker and Grier out behind our evolving/revolving O-line until things are solidified (for better or worse). Let Sam get the practices in, but let someone else wear the target as we build that line. 

I'm worried very little that Darnold will flop because he got no snaps in the pre-season. I am worried that an injury could leave the future of this team hanging for yet another year. Give the guy a chance to fly or flop on opening day, not in a sloppy, pointless preseason game.

[Snake]

11 hours ago, kungfoodude said:

Yeah, the injury part is somewhat true. But, we also loaded the roster with injury prone free agents(some of whom have already been injured at least once this offseason). 

I don't like the sitting them all, simply because I think the reps are valuable for young players. That said, this is also going to be the longest season in NFL history. While we may bitch now about this new trend of only playing backups in the preseason, more teams are going to be inclined to do that with these lengthened seasons. 

It will be interesting to see how the NFL responds as ratings and fan participation drop in the preseason. 

Yeah I'm not a huge fan of longer seasons and expanded playoffs. I thought 16 games were perfect.