If AJ Green is the Pick...

[bleys]

Green is definitely a good player, but our defense needs to be the best in the league to stop our division. Green would have to score 3 or 4 tds a game to keep up with these guys. The biggest problem with our offense is the schemes that we ran. JR said he will bring in good offensive coaching this time around, and we should be alright in that department. There's a couple of names floating around out there that would help our D, so there are a lot of ways of handling the situation. My dream scenario would be to get Ngata, Mebane, and pick Peterson with the first pick.

you have to score more points than the other teams in our division and our defense is talented already.. you need to help them out by keeping them off the field.. I see your point, but I think I can point to better reasons to each of your points..

I just read a piece on espn about Green and how he'd love for his family to be able to make the short drive from SC to see him play. After this Luck nonsense, it was refreshing to read. He's my choice for the pick. Sign a veteran signal caller, insert Green into the lineup, and get the boys rolling out. Let Clausen and Moore do battle for the backup position and get it done.

nice, love to read it, have a link?

[Jackofalltrades]

Let's keep personal attacks in the smack forum, really don't want to start giving out vacations.

[Vagrant]

nice, love to read it, have a link?

It was linked a few posts up from mine and I didn't see it, but this is the part I was talking about:

"I have to improve my game a lot," Green said. "I have to get a little bigger, a little faster, and I have to get a little smarter. But I'm up for the challenge."

Green said he didn't worry about the NFL's labor unrest and the possibility of a rookie salary cap -- "if I had really thought about that, I probably would've stayed in school" -- but he's certainly aware of the team that has the top pick in the draft: the Carolina Panthers.

That wouldn't be too far from home.

"I'm pretty sure a bunch of my family and friends could make that trip easily," he said.

A guy, thinking about his dream of the NFL, and not worrying about the money. A guy that could have gone back to Georgia to be the big man on campus for another year, coming out and hoping that the Carolina Panthers take him. Not only because we have the 1st pick, but because we're close to where his family lives and he likes that. What a great feeling to think that there are still players that WANT to be here.

[bleys]

A guy, thinking about his dream of the NFL, and not worrying about the money. A guy that could have gone back to Georgia to be the big man on campus for another year, coming out and hoping that the Carolina Panthers take him. Not only because we have the 1st pick, but because we're close to where his family lives and he likes that. What a great feeling to think that there are still players that WANT to be here.

all great reasons to bring him here.. I'm sold.

[PanthersGuy28]

The greedy part of me wants Newton, the smart part of me knows we should take Green...so much safer.

[R0CKnR0LLA]

The only way I see us taking Green is if we trade Smitty. We just drafted three WRs...three... Hurney is still here and as much as I don't see AE working out I doubt he's ready to move on from him so quickly.

Teams only go with 3 WR sets so often, so if Green and Smitty are your top two then you've got Gettis, LaFell and AE all wasting away on the bench, while only getting an occasional look.

It'd be one thing if both LaFell and Gettis looked like busts but they've both continue to improve and play well even given the QB situation.

[Happy Panther]

This post is for those who thinks Smitty is not what he use to be.......

Do people really believe Smith when he said he doesn't want to be number 1 anymore. When I first heard his comment about not being number one, I took it as him wanting to be 1A.

His comments last year on WFNZ were that he saw himself as a slot guy

[YoungPanthers89]

i do want offense with our 1st rounder, i just dont think anybody deserves #1 pick pay this year. we need to stock up on draft picks and trade down to get cam or green a little farther down

[bleys]

The only way I see us taking Green is if we trade Smitty. We just drafted three WRs...three... Hurney is still here and as much as I don't see AE working out I doubt he's ready to move on from him so quickly.

Teams only go with 3 WR sets so often, so if Green and Smitty are your top two then you've got Gettis, LaFell and AE all wasting away on the bench, while only getting an occasional look.

It'd be one thing if both LaFell and Gettis looked like busts but they've both continue to improve and play well even given the QB situation.

I don't see why you wouldn't use more 3 and 4 wide sets if you are focusing on opening up the offense..

to your point teams only go 3 WRs so often.. actually, a lot of teams use that as their base offense.. and those are all offenses in the top echelon of the league..

Fox is gone.. the days of run, run, run, punt should be as well.. with that should also go the "2 WR set only" philosophy..

you can still run the ball with 3 receivers on the field and you can still mix and match the receivers on the field..

only an extremely conservative coach would find issues with too many receivers (4 isn't too many)... only a coach that is incapable of opening up his playbook would find having too many weapons as a problem.. (what I'm trying to say is incompetence will find issues with this, otherwise, a smart coach will have a field day)

AE would be our 5th, and don't expect him to be a major player next year either.. so I'm excluding him from this discussion until he proves otherwise (and I doubt it'll be next year)

[Self Centered]

I will throw a football through my TV and Burn all of my Panthers stuff. WR #1 Overall is the absolute WORST draft pick a team can make. WR's are important but this defense esp on the line needs help, we need a QB etc.

WR is our need though, the defense outplayed the offense this year, lol @ how we are in need of a qb and wr when we just drafted in these positions just last year.

[Cat'sGrowl]

i do want offense with our 1st rounder, i just dont think anybody deserves #1 pick pay this year. we need to stock up on draft picks and trade down to get cam or green a little farther down

Green won't fall out of the Top 5, and will likely go higher in it.

No team is going to trade up one or two spots with us..

If we trade back then we're looking at the 8-14 range.

If you want Green you gotta take him 1st.

Not to mention....rookie cap.

[Cat'sGrowl]

The greedy part of me wants Newton, the smart part of me knows we should take Green...so much safer.

I can understand this.

Green is essentially a lock to become a good player, assuming we have even at least a half-competent coaching staff.

Newton, while a project, carries lots of potential.

I wouldn't be totally opposed to a Newton pick, I just think we're setting ourselves up for this season better by taking Green and nabbing a veteran QB, while we continue to search for our Franchise guy in the months and years to come.

Newton is boom or bust. We've got talent, but if Newton is terrible and we devote 3 years to him..then everything's WAY down the tubes.

[bigdog10]

Picking Green would be idiotic.

We would have used the following picks on WR in the last two years

From 2010 draft 78, 89, 198

From 2011 draft 1, 33 (Edwards trade)

You simply can't do that. If you guys want a reciever, we are going to have to add a vet through Free Agency.

[JayBeast52]

First of all, we need to get this talk of a trade down out of our heads, there is no clear Franchise Caliber QB nor 10-year all pro LT. No one will trade into this spot for what is available. The ONLY possible way a trade will happen is if Newton has a V-Young type championship game, runs a sub-4.5 40, and does great with interview process at the combine.

With that being said, we WILL be picking number 1. I love the idea of having AJ Green on our team, that would be GREAT! But there is a reason that LT and QB are normally taking with number 1, they are involved in EVERY SINGLE PLAY for an offense. Someone here already said this, and that person is right! BUT!!! That puts us in a pickle, given that there is no #1 pick QB or LT in this draft. I have looked at recent history of d-tackles taken high, and man, it is spotty. About 50-50 boom-bust ration. That scares me.

Ryan Sims, Dewayne Robertson, Jonathan Sulivan, Travis Johnson, Broderick Bunckley, Okoye, Carricker, Glen Dorsey, Tyson Jackson.... Who??? Exactly.... All interior D-Line taken over the past several years in the top end of 1st round. I know you are thinking, what about Suh, McCoy, Ellis, Ngata, Wilfork....But just like i said, 50-50. And who wants those odds when picking number 1.

I think the pick is going to come down to QB, DE, or WR. That leave us with Cam Newton, Bowers, or AJ green.

Like i said at top, Newton needs to have great BCS game, interview great, run great, and show the ability to make all the throws. I think the interview process will be VERY important. If all those come true, i am ok with that pick.

Now with bowers, from a strictly numbers standpoint, he is a beast (20 tackles for loss, and 15 sacks this year). Just look at what colts can do with two awesome pass rushers, it is an absolute nightmare for opposing teams. Team him with charles johnson could be great. I think this would be a good pick.

AJ green. There is no doubting this guys talent, and it is not just physical, his route running and hands are second to none the past few drafts. WRs can help QB's, just look at the last few games, remember all those drops?? I sure do. Clausen will get better, i know you all saw the improvement the past several weeks, dont think about Pittsburgh game, they can make pro bowl Qbs look that bad too. Dont forget the panthers had the hardest schedule, according to NFL.com, in the entire NFL. Not to mention key injuries to williams, otah, and thomas davis.

In conclusion, the pick will come down to those 3 players. And i will be happy with any of those three, just as long as the player is smart, dedicated, and plays every down as if it is his last!! You can't coach those three qualities, and that separates the guys who make it 15 great years in this league with the same team from draft busts and NFL journeymen!