Austin Corbett's move to center has seemed "inevitable"

[Stuart Smith]

5 minutes ago, SmokinwithWilly said:

You must be a rookie in Panthers fan minicamp. *Sarcasm*  Moves like this are almost as much a part of the Panthers organization as Keep Pounding. 

I know at one time there was talk of Brady Christensen moving around on the OL  line to learn different positions but I think that was 2 coaches ago. Has he ever actually ever played as much as a series at center? For those who might have better insight than me, would he be a viable backup? 

[SCO96]

48 minutes ago, top dawg said:

I mean, if they believe that he can play center at a proficient level, then he probably can. Not sure why message boarders would think that they know more than Morgan or Canales (or Joe Gilbert or Brad Idzik), but if they draft a center or not, I'm sure they're doing what they believe is best for the team.

What you are saying should be true. However, our franchise has shown a tendency to either underestimate or over value players for years. Our recent draft history is proof that our front office and coaching staffs are far from perfect in personnel evaluation.

We've:

Given away high draft choices for JAGS (Darnold and CJ Henderson)

Given away picks to move up in the draft only to pick players who make no impact significant impact in their rookie seasons (BY, Matt Corall, DJ Henderson)

Used draft capital to select players only to attempt to convert them to new positions (Armani Edwards, Brady Christensen)

Traded down to accumulate picks only to select JAGS (Terrace Marshall, Daviyon Nixon, Keith Taylor).

With the new coaching staff and new GM things may turn around in a hurry. I certainly hope it does. But, our recent roster decisions concern me. I'd feel better drafting a younger/healthier kid out of college to play center in 2024 instead of relying on a older player coming off of an injury who has never played the center position on a regular basis.

 

[SmittysLawnGuy]

His presser is on right now. Seems like a pretty smart guy. A little relief. Says he has been groomed to play center his whole career.

Edited April 24, 2024 by SmittysLawnGuy

[countryboi]

When was the last time Corbett played center? Even if he does well we need a long term plan and centers are normally undervalued in the draft

[MHS831]

1 hour ago, SmokinwithWilly said:

You must be a rookie in Panthers fan minicamp. *Sarcasm*  Moves like this are almost as much a part of the Panthers organization as Keep Pounding. 

I think all of us keep having our rookie years.  Hard to predict.  That is why this draft is fun--we get to learn a bit about Morgan (hopefully a Tepperless version) and the coaches. 

[pantherclaw]

2 hours ago, Soul Rebel said:

It's interesting for sure. Corbett has been our best OL the past couple of years, when healthy. He and Moton are plug and play, without concern. 

He has the build and IQ to make the move, but it's not necessarily that easy to just "cut and paste" with success.

A couple of things in Corbett's favor:

• Film junky, high IQ and vocal leader of the OL already
• Has a connection already with BY9
• Experience > rookie is always preferred at C, especially at a position that is critical for Young's success in only his second year.
• IIRC, wasn't Corbett responsible for the hand signals last year on snap counts. Leads me to believe he had personnel responsibilities and played a part in protection slides and identifying the Mike.  
• Body type and style of play is a fit for C

We still need to draft one this year, but it doesn't have to be a top-tier Frazier/JPJ kind per se. 

I'm with ya. Most linemen whom are valued at the pro level absolutely have position flexibility.   Corbett is a good football player, and I'm not so willing to discount his ability to play the position.  His NFL experience us going to give him an advantage over most rookies. 

While I'm never against drafting competition, or even a 10 year starter...I'm not willing to ignore Corbett's ability and experience at being a very capable starter. So many are saying it's an experiment.   I don't think it's that big of a stretch. 

I'm certainly looking forward to how the oline comes together this season. If I had my choice between all betern starters versus a rookie in the middle, I'll lean towards veteran all day long. 

[Bear Hands]

5 hours ago, Soul Rebel said:

It's interesting for sure. Corbett has been our best OL the past couple of years, when healthy. He and Moton are plug and play, without concern. 

He has the build and IQ to make the move, but it's not necessarily that easy to just "cut and paste" with success.

A couple of things in Corbett's favor:

• Film junky, high IQ and vocal leader of the OL already
• Has a connection already with BY9
• Experience > rookie is always preferred at C, especially at a position that is critical for Young's success in only his second year.
• IIRC, wasn't Corbett responsible for the hand signals last year on snap counts. Leads me to believe he had personnel responsibilities and played a part in protection slides and identifying the Mike.  
• Body type and style of play is a fit for C

We still need to draft one this year, but it doesn't have to be a top-tier Frazier/JPJ kind per se. 

Yeah gotta trust the new guys to an extent.  Who knows, if Barton is the only potential C that goes R1, we may pass on JPC and Frazier at 33 for skill positions.  

Could see Van Pran, Limmer or others fitting, but can't get too bent out of shape if it doesn't happen.    

[Jackie Lee]

5 hours ago, countryboi said:

When was the last time Corbett played center? Even if he does well we need a long term plan and centers are normally undervalued in the draft

Rams training camp competition of some sort, he ended up at rg. He was at Center almost all camp and then they last minute moved him to guard and gave Brian Allen the starting C job

[WhoKnows]

9 hours ago, SCO96 said:

Having a stout interior is only going to help Chubba, Miles, and Bryce. If Bryce ends up as a bust at least the next QB would join a team with a solid interior line in front of him.

No issues with your post, it just slapped me back to reality again after you were posting about getting a rookie C (and a WR). Helping Chubba, Miles and Bryce and also knowing if we go C and WR, it means we still have holes at TE and all over the D and our RBs/QB combo is likely the worst in the NFL. Ugh, we really need to hit our picks this year and next. We can’t miss any day 1 (next year) and day 2 picks.

[Growl]

people are vastly overestimating the transition from guard to center 

[Silent Majority]

Never a fan of converted centers. A center is a specialist. It takes a certain amount of tenacity and intellect. 

[SCO96]

13 hours ago, WhoKnows said:

No issues with your post, it just slapped me back to reality again after you were posting about getting a rookie C (and a WR). Helping Chubba, Miles and Bryce and also knowing if we go C and WR, it means we still have holes at TE and all over the D and our RBs/QB combo is likely the worst in the NFL. Ugh, we really need to hit our picks this year and next. We can’t miss any day 1 (next year) and day 2 picks.

I've already said this before, but I think it's worth mentioning again. Not only do we have high draft choices in round 2 (#33 and #39) we also have the first pick in round 3. With all of the holes on our team, we should come come out of this draft with 3 starters with our first 3 picks...or at worst 2 starters and a player who shows enough promise to start in 2025 and contributes significantly in 2024. Anything less would be a major disappointment.

[Jon Snow]

1 hour ago, SCO96 said:

I've already said this before, but I think it's worth mentioning again. Not only do we have high draft choices in round 2 (#33 and #39) we also have the first pick in round 3. With all of the holes on our team, we should come come out of this draft with 3 starters with our first 3 picks...or at worst 2 starters and a player who shows enough promise to start in 2025 and contributes significantly in 2024. Anything less would be a major disappointment.

I would not count on that happening. I doubt anyone will be starting no matter who is selected.  Hopefully they will be in the rotation on game day but I seriously doubt any rookie they take beyond the 2nd round will see the field this season unless this coaching staff can work miracles. It's either that or Dan Morgan is a frickn genius at finding talent. 

[WhoKnows]

1 hour ago, SCO96 said:

I've already said this before, but I think it's worth mentioning again. Not only do we have high draft choices in round 2 (#33 and #39) we also have the first pick in round 3. With all of the holes on our team, we should come come out of this draft with 3 starters with our first 3 picks...or at worst 2 starters and a player who shows enough promise to start in 2025 and contributes significantly in 2024. Anything less would be a major disappointment.

Yep and above average starters. Chubba, Donte, Tremble/Thomas, BC, etc. are/were “starters” in part because we didn’t have enough talent. Those type of starters don’t really improve us.

I’ve posted this before. I think we have to get 4 quality starters from 33, 39, 65, 2025 1st, 2025 3rd (should be top of round) and the rest of our picks. That’s just to keep us afloat and get somewhat better. 5 or 6 and Bryce not being poo, is what we need to contend in the division.

If we get some more miracles like Iky acting like a 6th overall pick and Horn playing the entire season in 2025+, that would help.