Is Matt Moore a starter and can the defense survive without Pepppers???

[monstercat]

I strongly disagree that Matt Moore has been playing without pressure to win, especially last year. This guy was playing for a job, which pretty much trumps any other form of motivation in this sport. And, IMO, the fact that the defense played so well for him had a lot to do with his ability to avoid turnovers, sustain drives, and put points on the board, which allowed the defense to get a little rest and play loose for a change.

BTW, everybody seems to have forgotten that the Giants had just cleaned the Skins clock the week before the Panthers came to town and were pretty heavily favored to beat the Panthers, or that the Vikings were still playing for home field advantage, which would have been huge for them in the play offs.

[Dpantherman]

Ok, let's take the Dallas game. He had pressure to win, he was playing at home, and the defense surrendered 20 points. He popped a rating of 70.8 with a long of 57 yards where Smitty busted one on the outside that went for a touchdown. Take that one play away and his rating is 49.8. That's not exactly a great reaction to real pressure, but you have to give him a pass because he was a rookie.

When he beat the Seahawks that season the defense held them to 10 points. He did close out the season with an impressive win over the Buccaneers, where the offense clicked well. But in that game he did all his damage in the first half and was shut out in the second. Williams did all the work then, and brought home the victory.

Moore didn't get another chance to start until last year, and we all know how well he did. And as has been pointed out multiple times by multiple people, the defense didn't allow more than 10 points in any of his victories. Jeff Lewis could win with those numbers, especially if he had the ground game we currently enjoy.

I want Moore to succeed, but the jury's out on him. Whether he'll be another Romo or another Hill won't be known until the real games start.

it was his first start! and lets be real, he had a clear shot to win in the 4th quarter on a long ball to Drew Carter. no call on pass interference killed the game.

[Cyberjag]

You guys can all say he's going to be great, and I want to believe. But so far, there's just as much evidence that he's another Shaun Hill as there is that he's Tony Romo. That's all I've been saying.

I'm glad you're certain he'll be a star. I just wouldn't bet the franchise on it. And based on the way we drafted, neither will Fox or Hurney.

[monstercat]

You guys can all say he's going to be great, and I want to believe. But so far, there's just as much evidence that he's another Shaun Hill as there is that he's Tony Romo. That's all I've been saying.

I'm glad you're certain he'll be a star. I just wouldn't bet the franchise on it. And based on the way we drafted, neither will Fox or Hurney.

I don't know if you're directing this at me or not, but I'm not saying that Matt Moore is a guaranteed star. I'm just saying that it makes no sense for so many people to assume everything negative about Moore, while assuming everything will be positive with a guy like Kevin Kolb, who has proven even less than Moore has so far.

That, and that Moore had just as much pressure to perform last year as any other QB in the league. Like I said, he was playing for a job, which is a big deal for an undrafted player who has never signed a huge contract and has no guaranteed future in the NFL. Even this year, Moore knows nothing is guaranteed, and that he will have to work even harder to keep his job as a starter than he did as a back up.

So why should we expect him to fail when he has even more motivation than ever?

[panthers55]

The initial question is whether Moore will be the starter and the only answer is that he is the starter. How well he plays is anyone's guess. I do believe that if he can go 4-1 with a questionable work ethic and daily preparation, he should do fairly well with what everyone acknowledges are good leadership skills and good work ethics even with other coaches being able to watch film and gameplan for him.

What I saw last year was a guy who was cool under pressure and for whom the game has slowed down. He never seemed hurried or goaded into making bad throws last year. I am optimistic that he will be efficient for us and help the offense be productive. Whether or not that will be enough or not to overcome a slowly developing defense remains to be seen.

[Woodie]

Moore hasn't played in a game with true pressure to win? huh? 2007- Dallas game where we got shafted in his first start. ive posted video evidence before, and will again if need be.

do you not think this team wanted to go 8-8 bad?? if not than you shouldn't be in here. the Panthers had a HUGE will to get to .500 on the year after the playoffs were out of the picture. Do you not think the Vikings and BRETT FAVRE wanted to win on Sunday Night Football? Matt Moore played lights out. how about the Giants game? that running game that he was behind...we hes behind it again in 2010. Matt Moore has prove multiple times he can get it done when it counts. had he not be screwed in 2007, hed have 2 wins in prime time.

Ask any player, in any sport, and there is no comparison between the normal pressure associated with wanting to win and playoff pressure. Moore has never been in a position where anything of real substance was on the line for his team. He's never felt the added pressure of fighting for a playoff spot, being in a real hole that he had to lead the team out of, or having the team around him not playing well with the pressure on him, as leader, to carry them to victory. That doesn't mean he can't or won't, just that he hasn't had to.

What a lot of people are failing to realize is that Moore was playing with house money in his starts. He had very little to lose since the team was already eliminated from playoff contention and not much was expected of him, along with the fact that in both instances, he was replacing very poor QB play, which made looking good by comparison much easier. The biggest thing that he had on the line was his own position on the team, and that's personal pressure, which is FAR different from the pressure and expectations heaped on a QB by his teammates, management, and the fanbase when games are still meaningful and the team still hopes to earn a playoff spot.

Not to mention the fact that there was very little tape of Moore, and opponents didn't know much about him. This year, everyone knows he's coming, and they have assuredly done their homework to break down his strengths and weaknesses much more thoroughly than can be done 3/4ths into the season. So while no one is saying Moore cannot or won't be very good, some of us recognize that there is a lot that has yet to be seen before we can anoint him as anything but a question mark with good potential.

[Woodie]

You can't take away credit from Moore just for being on a good team. He was in what I would call 4 "real" games last season. The reason the team played so well is because he never turned the ball over and his passing skills were respectable enough to keep the offense in balance. In it's simplest form, Matt Moore's biggest strength is not being Jake Delhome.

All year long we were in games that Jake just threw away. The defense or running game barely ever let the team down.

Our offense is built for a game managing QB. We are always close to last in the league on passing attempts and we run the ball very well. Teams can watch all the the tape Moore has proved he doesn't suck ass and that's all we need.

Watching games from 08 we won even with Jake sucking many times. Some of our biggest blowouts were when Jake was having off days. He was way off target against the chiefs, broncos, lions, and bucs.

You're right, it's not fair to take credit away from Moore because he was on a good team, but it's also not fair to over credit him when much of the team's success was due to the quality of his surrounding player's performance. Now, Moore did do very well protecting the football and making plays when he had to, which was also huge in the team's end-of-year play. But I think all it's given us is a reason to be cautiously optimistic. If he can continue to play like that once he's faced more adversity while carrying much of the burden of the team's success squarely on his shoulders, then I think he will have fully earned the accolades many are heaping on him. Until then, I believe we need to take a wait and see approach on how he fits into the team's future.

[Woodie]

I don't know if you're directing this at me or not, but I'm not saying that Matt Moore is a guaranteed star. I'm just saying that it makes no sense for so many people to assume everything negative about Moore, while assuming everything will be positive with a guy like Kevin Kolb, who has proven even less than Moore has so far.

That, and that Moore had just as much pressure to perform last year as any other QB in the league. Like I said, he was playing for a job, which is a big deal for an undrafted player who has never signed a huge contract and has no guaranteed future in the NFL. Even this year, Moore knows nothing is guaranteed, and that he will have to work even harder to keep his job as a starter than he did as a back up.

So why should we expect him to fail when he has even more motivation than ever?

I think the only place anyone has made the comparison between Moore and Kolb is here on the Huddle. It's not really the same situation at all. The Eagles have higher expectations and are more high profile than the Panthers, so naturally Kolb will be talked about more...not to mention the fact that the expectations on a 2nd round pick will always be higher than an undrafted player when each of them gets their chance.

And as for pressure, you're talking about personal pressure, which is much different than team pressure. It's one thing when the only person you have to let down is yourself, it's completely different when an entire team's expectation reside on your arm. Moore clearly gave us a reason to be hopeful, but none of the games he started provided anywhere near the kind of pressure that accompanies a playoff run.

With all that said, nobody is expecting, or wanting, him to fail. All that some of us are saying is to be cautious about over praising what he has accomplished. He is still not a finished product, and needs to show that he can handle the adversity he has yet to face before crowning him as anything but a hopeful candidate.

[monstercat]

Matt Moore had plenty of pressure on him to not let his teammates down. If he didn't feel that, then he has no business playing QB in the NFL, even as a back up. Not only that, but the Panthers actually still had a slim chance to make the play offs last year in his first couple of starts, so I don't buy this "no pressure" argument at all.

[Cyberjag]

Has Moore been down one score in the fourth yet? How did he respond to that kind of pressure?

[monstercat]

Has Moore been down one score in the fourth yet? How did he respond to that kind of pressure?

I certainly have seen nothing to suggest that Moore will crumble as soon as things get tough. He has played against Dallas and Minnesota on MNF and he didn't look at all intimidated in either of those games.

I don't even understand what your point is, because Clausen, Pike, and Cantwell haven't faced that situation in the NFL either, so it really doesn't matter until it actually happens for one of them.

[Cyberjag]

I hope you don't think I'm suggesting Clausen, Pike, or Cantwell is an upgrade over Moore, I'm not. I also don't mean to suggest that he'll fail. I'm just saying that Moore is the best unknown we have, but he's still unknown.

[CarolinaKat]

As far as sacks go what about Eric Norwood? He does practice what the DE's. I honestly would put him at LB but he has the energy to get to the QB on every play. Peppers didn't do that. He ranked up sacks late in the year. He did nothing the first half of the season. I think Ron Meeks will use the new speed we have and this years defense will be top 10-15.

[monstercat]

I hope you don't think I'm suggesting Clausen, Pike, or Cantwell is an upgrade over Moore, I'm not. I also don't mean to suggest that he'll fail. I'm just saying that Moore is the best unknown we have, but he's still unknown.

Well it's not like Matt Moore is a complete unknown. If you think about it, he's just as much of a known comodity as Mark Sanchez is for the Jets. Sanchez may make a lot more money and has a few more starts, but the Panthers coaching staff has been around Matt Moore for 3 years now, so they have a pretty good idea how he will handle just about every situation that comes up, on and off the field.