i hope we fire 1/2 of payroll and start fresh

1/1/2008 10:46:58 AM

wat

1/1/2008 4:14:33 PM

If they don't dump Foster for DeAngelo next year something is wrong.

Foster sucks and Williams is getting better.

1/1/2008 4:32:45 PM

bad start for an "official" thread. although it certainly is easy to be pessimistic about next year's panthers team, why take that route?

IN JAKE WE TRUST

1/2/2008 12:05:31 AM

Panthers get the 13th pick in the 2008 draft

Gotta go with S Kenny Phillips

And please no to Andre Woodson/Matt Ryan

[Edited on January 2, 2008 at 10:17 AM. Reason : ]

1/2/2008 10:16:51 AM

That pick is too high for Ryan, and possibly too low for Woodson. The Panthers don't need to spend a first round pick on a QB, expecially of Moore continues to emerge. It might be worth a 2nd-4th round pick. I think Ryan would be a good pickup if he falls to them in the second round.

1/2/2008 10:23:30 AM

We would be picking 9th if we lost to Tampa

Of course, the best players in the draft now will be picked 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th

1/2/2008 10:30:54 AM

PLEASE DO NOT HIRE BILLICK

1/2/2008 1:56:34 PM

Trust me Charlotte: I know quarterbacks

1/2/2008 1:58:07 PM

Billick has fielded some top 30 offenses in Baltimore.

1/2/2008 2:02:34 PM

Quote :

"That pick is too high for Ryan, and possibly too low for Woodson."

I'd have to disagree. Even though I think Ryan is overrated, a LOT of mock drafts and draft experts have Ryan going top 10, some even top 5.. ahead of Brohm and Woodson

1/2/2008 4:36:24 PM

people like Tom Brady and Tim Couch (for different reasons obviously) have kind of turned people off to using top picks on QBs

1/2/2008 4:40:28 PM

Some people, but not most

Good QB's will continue to go in the top 10, year after year

1/2/2008 4:46:44 PM

^^^I'm not saying Ryan won't go higher. I'm saying it is too high a pick for the Panthers to use on him, or really any QB in this class. They have more pressing needs (notably their aging defense), and if Fox is returning, will not be spending a #1 pick on a "QB of the future". I can see Woodson moving up the draft board because I think he'll impress at combines and will be picked high as well. If for some reason one of the better QBs slips out of the first round, it might be worth taking a shot.

[Edited on January 2, 2008 at 4:47 PM. Reason : .]

1/2/2008 4:46:52 PM

DEFENSE AND OFFENSIVE LINE, then go from there!

1/2/2008 5:32:07 PM

Yeah the panthers only look good when they can consistently run the football. We havent been able to do that since S. Davis was with us. Draft must focus on:

-O line
-Bruiser RB (Like Jamaal Charles) to turn DeAngelo into what Julius Jones is to Marion Barber



you can get away with an aging defense like ours if they arent on the field the whole game because we cant sustain an offensive drive (3rd downs conv) or run the clock (lack of rungame)

[Edited on January 2, 2008 at 5:41 PM. Reason : lkj]

1/2/2008 5:40:39 PM

I'm gonna go with the best player available philosophy. Beside, good OLine men can be found in the later round.

1/2/2008 5:58:59 PM

from my mock:

13. CAR - Vernon Gholston, DE

1/2/2008 6:18:26 PM

^depends on peppers' status....eh?

1/2/2008 9:22:40 PM

or rucker

he might retire

1/2/2008 9:50:29 PM

While FB isn't a sexy pick, I'd love to see Owen Schmitt leading the way for Deangelo Williams.

1/2/2008 9:50:30 PM

Not likely since the FB is going the way of the dinosaur.

That being said, Mack Strong was my favorite NFL player up until his retirement this year.

1/2/2008 11:24:23 PM

Panthers Needs

Need to fire Mike Trgovac his defense was atrocious

Need to fire either Marty Hurney or John Fox. I would go with Hurney.

Jerry Richardson needs to have some contact with the local media, he has been silent all year. His stadium is nice and all but there is no advantage playing at home. The problem is PSL's while they were a great way to pay for the stadium he has outpriced his target audience. The PSL owners are rich country club types (a majority of them UNC fans). Richardson has too many rules no standing up for longer than 1 minute. The Stadium Video is worse its non stop advertising so there is no hype. The music is boring.

Unfortunately the Panthers are going to have make some moves with there current roster to improve. I believe they only have 6 million in cap space to work with this offseason.

They need to improve both lines. I think Rucker is going to retire, Jenkins wants out, he is using the Kerry Collins excuse that he is home sick. I think maybe we should think about going to a 3-4 next season.

The biggest key is finding a viable number 2 receiver who is consistent. They don't need to draft another receiver from SC because they suck.

1/3/2008 10:35:20 AM

I hope we keep Jordan Gross. The guy was the best OLine man we got this year, not surprisingly since it's his contract year.

1/5/2008 12:39:18 AM

i always kinda liked jordan gross...i feel he is a solid dependable player...i wouldnt mind getting rid of fox


and something HAS to be done about our home crowd....i cant imagine an nfl team having a worse home crowd...i was so underwhelmed at every game i've been to but the cowboys playoff game like 3 years ago....it is PATHETIC...i think ^^ was talking about that too which i agreed with

1/5/2008 6:07:33 PM

bttt...anything new in pantherland?

1/16/2008 1:16:12 AM

bttt

1/22/2008 12:50:11 AM

http://www.askthecommish.com/salarycap/numbers.asp

Looks like the Panthers may have some salary isssues.

Also, the Chargers are 43 million (!) under the cap! They better make some big moves this offseason.

1/22/2008 1:11:40 AM

^allows them to take best available player in the draft if they so choose

good problem to have

1/22/2008 1:13:52 AM

heard from someone who would know that the reason for Peppers struggles this season were that he had Syphilis

And he got it in Europe

from a guy


Good chance its BS...just wanted to throw it out there so I get credit if its ever confirmed

1/22/2008 9:12:21 AM

John Fox gets one more year in my eyes. If we struggle through another season for whatever reason, then yeah, he needs to go. Not because I believe he's a bad coach, but at some point with a struggling team, you need a change of scenery. The veteran players especially might respond to a fresh mindset in the locker room.

As far as personnel, our needs haven't changed dramatically from last season. Still need a solid #2 option opposite Steve Smith and better depth at linebacker. Obviously that'll change if guys retire on the defensive line, but hopefully Peppers will come back with some motivation and play better in a contract year. I'm not gonna judge the offensive line based on what David Carr and Vinny Testaverde did back there, especially since we were able to run the ball well at times.

[Edited on January 22, 2008 at 9:46 AM. Reason : :]

1/22/2008 9:38:35 AM

Jamaal Charles isn't a bruiser, and he's faster than most RBs in the NFL. Dude's a champion track star, sprinter.

1/22/2008 10:21:36 AM

what we need is that RB Kevin Smith out of UCF. That guy is a bruiser. He complements well with Deangelo Williams.

1/22/2008 10:34:39 AM

Why not look at RB Michael Turner from SD (pretty sure he's a FA this year). To me, he seems like the perfect RB to compliment DeAngelo. He's tough, has incredible balance, and was averaging like 8 yards a carry last year or something crazy like that.

In the draft, you've gotta think S Kenny Phillips first. If he's gone, I'd look at the OT, DE positions, or go after a WR like Cal's Desean Jackson. We need another playmaker badly.

1/22/2008 11:05:48 AM

I don't really think the Panthers should be looking for a big money skill player in FA unless it's an elite WR or tight end (although Jeff King ain't bad).

[Edited on January 22, 2008 at 11:11 AM. Reason : :]

1/22/2008 11:11:02 AM

F jake i think matt more played better once he got in rhythm and he's not old allready so maybe he'll be a franchise 1/4 back

1/22/2008 11:51:06 AM

I think RB is our #1 priority (we need a big bruiser to go with DeA).....a steady running game has alot of the effect of another good receiver....if we run the ball steadily (average around 100 yards/game) that'll take a defender out of the secondary and put him in the box most of the time. That's one less there to cover smitty (which is the main point of getting another good receiver anyway)...and lets not forget that rookie WR's hardly ever perform great out of the gate, but usually take a year or two to get up to speed so don't give up on jarrett just yet.

I also think that both lines need attention....re-sign moorhead, lewis and make sure to keep jenkins around. if they do all this, they should be good at tackle, if not they'll have to go out and get a couple good ones (I also wouldn't be against moving Kemo, but he's servicable). Also, wether or not Rucker retires, we need to add another good DE...peppers is in a contract year in '08, so he'll likely pick it up a bit.
Try to resign Gross and pick up another good tackle (maybe in the first round or two depending on who's out there), and look to create a little depth at guard/center (fanica from pit, maybe).

next comes WR/S. Maybe pick up through FA, but I think these are two positions we can fill in the later rounds of the draft (our safties weren't bad last year, and Harris should be a solid starter for years to come.....As said earlier, I think alot of our problems in the WR area could be solved by a consistent run game and the continued improvement of Jarrett)

and maybe a little depth @ LB (although I think that restructuring Morgan's contract and using him as a backup would work well), and special teams help (eventhough Robinson started to pick it up @ the end of the season, our overall special teams play is abysmal.

I think we're in pretty good shape everywhere else.

we have a good core of young talent, we just need a few good FA pickups to go with some key re-signings and a homerun draft to get back to being a contender in '08

1/22/2008 12:09:10 PM

We need a line way more than we need another running back or reciever

A good line helps both the passing and running game

Its not sexy to draft a lineman, but its what we should do

1/22/2008 12:11:39 PM

We'll have a hard time resigning any of our FAs with our salary cap, we're in pretty bad shape thanks to some huge contracts that haven't been earning their pay recently. I say Dan Morgan and Rucker retire or are released to free up some salary room. Then we draft Phillips or Rivers(LB) in the draft depending on if Phillips is still there or not.

1/22/2008 12:47:06 PM

^^I mostly agree....I think we should look for a solid tackle in the 1st or 2nd round (after re-signing gross), go after guard/center depth in FA or later rounds, and look for a RB in FA unless a gem falls to us in the draft.

Our line isn't that bad, any line is going to look bad when Testaverde and Carr are standing in concrete back there (our stats aren't bad when Delhomme or Moore were behind center). and Williams had success running behind them, but for some reason Foxy wouldn't give him enough PT until the last of the season.

^Morgan will be released or have his contract restructured (I think he'd fit in nicely as a backup), Rucker might restucture, but his salary isn't too bad now. what we really need to do is dump foster....he has either the 2nd or 3rd highest salary number next season @ something like 4.5 mil. either way, spending a high draft pick on a LB is not a good decision imo, as our starting 3 (who performed well last year) will be back next year.

1/22/2008 2:05:51 PM

My husband thinks, and I agree, that we need to trade Peppers for Tory Holt.

We need a younger or less broken O-Line. We need that first before changing out RB's

We need a SOLID backup (I would actually prefer to get rid of Delhome)

I would also like to see JCo as a panther at receiver

1/22/2008 2:16:35 PM

Quote :

"We need a younger or less broken O-Line. We need that first before changing out RB's "

DeA, Delhomme, and Moore looked fine with our O-line.

Remember a few years ago when everyone was saying Carr was a great QB with a bad O-line? Schaub had pretty much the same O-line and did pretty well....meanwhile, Carr?

I'm not saying we are set, but by no means do we need to blow it up and start over.

1/22/2008 2:41:03 PM

let Gross go ahead and play left tackle...let him know that now instead of doing what we've done the past year or two and had him at right tackle and then after an injury told him to move over to LT during mid season

1/22/2008 2:42:17 PM

^IDK, Gross is markedly better @ RT than LT.

Are there any big time LT's in the draft this year?

lol, we could just get a left handed QB, that way Gross could protect the blind side and still stay on the right.

1/22/2008 2:51:53 PM

i think the reason he's better at RT is because thats what he's trained for in training camp in practice but I think he's good enough to be fine at LT...LT is important enough where we're not gonna get anybody as good as him at the 13th pick

1/22/2008 2:54:12 PM

You could be right, but I heard an interview with a lineman last year (may have been a panther) who said that sometimes it's just like throwing a ball or swinging a bat....some people are just better/more comfortable with doing it from a certain side.

1/22/2008 3:06:31 PM

he played left and right tackle at utah and some guard as well i believe...i just think he's probably our best o-lineman, and since LT is the most important position, lets try and get him comfortable in that position in the offseason...if we had our eyes on some ballin left tackle we could do something different but thats a tough position to fill

1/22/2008 3:11:18 PM

Panthers sign kicker Rhys Lloyd to 2 year deal

http://www.charlotte.com/panthers/story/457283.html

He is a much better kickoff guy than Kasay and should be able to kick a lot of touchbacks, but what does that mean for Kasay and Baker? Kasay is still a better field goal kicker and Baker is a good punter. Maybe its just to put some pressure on Kasay, I dunno, but its something

1/22/2008 5:20:29 PM

who names their kid Rhys

1/22/2008 5:30:24 PM

Quote :

"That pick is too high for Ryan, and possibly too low for Woodson. The Panthers don't need to spend a first round pick on a QB, expecially of Moore continues to emerge."

I must have missed that.

1/22/2008 6:58:42 PM