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After tommorrow - the season is 1/4 way done

Rip Saw

By Rip Saw,
in Carolina Panthers

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Rip Saw Newbie

Rip Saw

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win or lose are you satisfied with any aspect of our play? If we pull off the unlikely and get to 8-8 will you say we had a successful season?

Just wondering- I know I had my hopes up probably too high for this team - Ive learned my lesson over the years, but still anything less than a winning record is going to bug the poo out of me.

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Rip Saw Newbie

Rip Saw

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What if we go 8-8 only because the d steps it up but we see the offense slide? Is that really progress? Not trying to be obtuse or a troll - just wondering if we can say 8-8 is really progress if we truly had the potential to have a winning season but didnt because we went backwards on O. Seems like every year a new bug a boo we didnt see coming bites us in the ass - last year we thought our d would be fine - but they blew and our o was- this year the O cant seem to click and our d is showing some signs of life - well sort of - maybe.

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rayzor Grand Master

rayzor

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it's hard to put qualifiers on it. obviously we all want the same thing....a ring.

what i want in addition to getting that ring is to see growth in all phases of the game. if i can't get that ring...i want growth and progress.

i think as badly as the defense has been, it has gotten better than last year, but it should have just by being healthier but it still hasn't been where it should be by any means.

the offense....obviously struggling. not happy with that at all.

special teams.....meh. not happy with that either. i'd like to see us at least get some shots at a field goal. only one attempt this year at all?????

pretty much i've not been satisfied at all. happier with the D, but still not satisfied.

8-8....it's at least a step in the right direction. i don't mind a slow climb to the top as long as you get there and have some staying power. i'll wait. not sure what else i would do or could do short of jumping ship (which i'm not).

we should have a winning record. i don't see enough teams left on the schedule that should be keeping us from that. the only team that can really stop this one is this one. i really believe they've got enough talent to be a perennial playoff team and as crazy as it seems i think they've got the right coaches to get it done....well, maybe not on special teams, but elsewhere i think they are good or can be. they just have to get everything to click. it's only a matter of time. i just hope it's soon.

here's hoping the next 3/4 is better than the 1/4.

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pantherj Grand Master

pantherj

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Going into the season I thought our defense would be much better with the return of Beason, Edwards, Hogan, and TD. The addition of Luke, Norman, Alexander, and the other Edwards were icing on the cake, or so I thought. Then reality set in for me. Our safeties are small and slow, so we have major problems in pass defense. Beason is slower due to the lingering effects of his achilles injury. Hogan is lost for the season due to a phantom injury. TD is not allowed to start at WLB. Luke doesn't look anything like a DROY, or the 9th overall pick. McClain was a bust. Things just didn't come together like a was hoping.

On offense I was sure we would have a good season. To my horror the O-line, even with the addition of a second round pick at LG, went down hill significantly. The run blocking is terrible against teams with a good D-line, and the pass blocking is nothing to write home about. When your O-line gets bullied by teams with good d-lines, you can pretty much forget about the playoffs. You can't execute your offense without good run and pass blocking from the O-line. Cam, Smith, Stew, Olsen, they don't really matter much if your line is losing badly in the trenches.

I'm expecting something like 6-10 from this team.

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Marguide Newbie

Marguide

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...To my horror the O-line, even with the addition of a second round pick at LG, went down hill significantly. The run blocking is terrible against teams with a good D-line, and the pass blocking is nothing to write home about. When your O-line gets bullied by teams with good d-lines, you can pretty much forget about the playoffs. You can't execute your offense without good run and pass blocking from the O-line. Cam, Smith, Stew, Olsen, they don't really matter much if your line is losing badly in the trenches.

Do you remember last year after game 4 or 5 when the O-line had to have a players only meeting to discuss why we couldn't run the ball and were sucking so bad?

I don't know what it is. It's like they have to get their asses handed to them for a few weeks before they start to take things seriously.

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CarolinaNCSU Proficient

CarolinaNCSU

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Would I consider 8-8 successful?

No.

Would I consider 8-8 progress?

Yes.

Well said.

I thought we were an 8 to 10 win team. 8 would put us progressing, and somewhat of a "recovery" for this season based on what happens tomorrow. Is that successful in the grand scheme of things? Maybe not. But it's progress in the right direction and being a playoff contender. We're still a year away IMO and need to hit on a couple of draft picks/pick up a guy or two in FA until we can be serious contenders.

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pantherj Grand Master

pantherj

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Do you remember last year after game 4 or 5 when the O-line had to have a players only meeting to discuss why we couldn't run the ball and were sucking so bad?

I don't know what it is. It's like they have to get their asses handed to them for a few weeks before they start to take things seriously.

I seem to remember a few players only team meetings over the years. I think it's time for another meeting for our O-line.

When we had Otah and Wharton on the line we had a lot more power. When we faced a team with a big powerful D-line, we just ran it behind Otah, and he crushed anyone in front of him. Simple enough. So we no longer have Otah and Wharton. Which side do we run behind when the going gets tough and we're facing a team like the Giants? To the right behind Bell? To the left behind the aging Gross? You need premium run blockers on one side of the line or the other imo. If I had to guess what Rivera is planning, I'd say he's going to draft a great run blocking LT, move Gross over to RT, and then we can be a team that runs to the left side when the sh!t hits the fan. Or we can draft a great run blocking RT, whatever. Cam is still learning to play QB, so we need to be able to run at will.

For this season I think we have to give Bruce Campbell a chance at either RG or RT. We need to try and plug him in before it's too late and the season is circling the drain.

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