I can't believe this came from Pat Yasinskas!

[mountainpantherfan]

http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/18443/king-julius-wouldnt-wear-the-crown

Like any football team, there’s a certain climate in which the players live. Under coach John Fox, players are expected to be company men -- noncontroversial, polished and active in the community. That works nicely for some guys. Take Minter and Rucker, for example. They were two good -- but far from great -- players. They followed the corporate tone, were active in the community and are now set for life in Charlotte simply because they are Mike Rucker and Mike Minter.

There have been certain players over the years who have resented how Fox and Richardson rewarded the guys who played strictly by their rules. And there have been many players over the years who have resented how receiver Steve Smith gets to play by his own set of rules and still gets rewarded.

Probably the best article ever written by Yas! Not sure if its just the way he is presenting the information but it was eye-opening to me.

[The NFL Shield At Midfield]

Yeah I read that one earlier today. Pretty solid piece.

[OneBadassCat]

Well Smith is really the heart of the panthers. He's way more than talented enough and he brings his lunch pail unlike other players on the team, so yea I'd cut him some slack.

[mario]

I've always liked almost every PY's articles, thought

[CharlotteBeer.com]

People -- and I’m talking owner, coaches, teammates, media and fans -- wanted Peppers to have a little touch of Rucker and Minter, a little dose of Smith and a tad of the fiery competitiveness of Jake Delhomme.

Well, guess we know why it took Moore so long to get his shot.

[Zod]

Maybe the other players should worry about upping their game to steve's level before being concerned with how he is treated.

[CRA]

Well Smith is really the heart of the panthers. He's way more than talented enough and he brings his lunch pail unlike other players on the team, so yea I'd cut him some slack.

well, Smitty got a lot of slack before he reached superstar status imo. Pretty sure he had already punched out a teammate and was kicking defenders in the head before he deserved too much slack.

[pantherfan81]

Smitty is the face of the franchise and one of their biggest playmakers. That's why he gets leeway.

[davos]

That was a surprisingly good read.

I think some of the stuff he mentioned is definitely more interesting than the typical "possible trade" sports journalism ploys.

[Matt Foley]

well, Smitty got a lot of slack before he reached superstar status imo. Pretty sure he had already punched out a teammate and was kicking defenders in the head before he deserved too much slack.

If the practice squad kid or Ken Lucas had sucker punched Smitty, they'd be off the team. And possibly in jail.

[Stone]

i would rather have smitty on the team than pep any day. i want players that play hard all the time and give it there all. i like smitty because he cares and he shows it.

[Cpanthers5851]

yup i read that at work today. it was a good read

[DOUBLETROUBLE33]

Maybe the other players should worry about upping their game to steve's level before being concerned with how he is treated.

exactly this ^

[panthersphan]

Steve Smith = GOAT in Pantherland