Panthers Status

I was a regular poster/contributor on other boards, but stopped once the debate over Jerry Richardson's cheapness raged on past saturation. I've resisted joining here, mainly due to the language, but there's intelligent and, occasionally, funny postings, so here goes...

The level of play in Carolina right now is embarrassing. John Fox squads have always been sloppy, but the depth of ineptness is surprising even to those of us that expect it. And I don't buy the whine that the Panthers are loaded with rookies and young players, especially on offense, and that's why they lack discipline. The mental part of the game has been missing in Carolina for a very long time.

My Grandmother knows what offensive plays are going to be called, and that's truly sad commentary. Truth is, if the Panthers suddenly break out with a wildly successful offense they'd still be boring to watch. There is absolutely no imagination on offense. Sue me, but run-first is boring.

Is it just me, or does it seem like week after week opposing receivers, whether they be wide-outs, tight ends or running backs, find space in the Panthers defense vs. Carolina receivers that consistently must fight for every thrown ball? Be interesting to compare Carolina's YAC to the rest of the league. You might even be able to draw a direct line between that stat and the won/loss record.

Whatever. I've ranted against John Fox for a few years now. He's wearied me. I suspect he's done the same to Richardson. Personally, I think JR's decision to hang Fox in the wind was the right call at the right time.

Maybe you can tell that I place most of the blame for the sorry state of affairs in Charlotte squarely at the feet of the Head Coach. I don't mean to just say that he's responsible; I think he's the main cause. At some point, one has to connect two straight 0-3 starts to the Head Coach.

All that said, bringing in a new HC won't suddenly turn the Panthers into contenders. But I sincerely hope they'll at least be fun to watch.

I do like the Panthers' future. The talent level and youth has increased, especially overall athleticism. Hurney's done a good job with contracts that work, has learned from mistakes and turned away from the temptations of free agency, and has done a decent job with his drafts. The organization has had some turnover up top, but the strength and integrity from top to bottom is solid. The franchise has good potential.

The uncapped year helped the Panthers clear its books. Say what you will about the effect on the product, and that horse is dead already, but the future looks bright.

Fox and the Panthers may rebound in the second half and win 6 to 8 games this season. But I think the writing was on the wall after starting 0-3 last year and I think he knows it. Someone in Dallas or San Diego may want a player's coach who has a good track record with veteran teams.

 

Thank you, Collin.

 

How much are we paying Jake again?

 

Collin would never give Hurney this much cred.

 

Wow what a rant! I must admit its tough to be a Panther fan right now.

 

Calculated risk. Who knew Jake's psyche would be so damaged by the debacle against the Cardinals?

I'm no Hurney apologist, though it may seem like it in my post, but at least he's making mistakes with his own and not damning his cap with someone else's trash.

 

hurney should have let that fraud julius peppers walk last year too.franchise money for a guy who played not to get hurt. watching him ball last night was a testament to what a lazy ass peppers was. I hope he gets turf toe and cant play for the rest of the year.

end of displaced rant

 

Jake's contract isn't terrible for a starter if he makes it past year one. I don't think they signed it expecting to pay for him all at once.

I like run-first. There's other ways to do it, I prefer passing with some precision, but we're good at it most times. It's struggling to do the rest well that has left us starting over and in this hole.

Which, I know most people are crapping on Davidson, and stuff like the 3rd/8 I form playaction isn't reasonable, but he's called a lot of solid stuff this year, some of it when nothing could really work. He's responsible for making it work, too, but for what we want, he still seems like a reasonable choice. It's often a matter, when you get in these situations, where no matter what doesn't work, it's always magically the opposite. In consecutive weeks I heard that we should run more at the goal and then less at the goal. I'm glad Fox has legitimate principles for offense and defense, because if we were a passing first team, people would bemoan that; right about now fans always want to run a hybrid 46/3-4 with bump and run corners that brings eleven to the passer but never gets burned by it. Scheme isn't our issue.

I also do like our coach, that he screws with the media, and that he is hard nosed but a player's coach. I wouldn't do everything the same way, I wouldn't have hired him, but I'm glad we did. I think it sucks we are where we are, default intending to scuttle the coach since most everyone else is going to be back.

Either way, reasoned thoughts. I'm glad you're not a spammer, so anything else is a bonus, but solid ideas. Not much I can do about the fucking language. We only dot out the most offensive slurs, we leave the big seven alone, and when we did get rid of two slurs people just found more creative, hilarious ones behind them. And I've been at forums where if your cornerback's name is Jimmy Hitchcock, well, you can't say his name.


If you're Collin, good show. I thought the 10,000 post schtick was a little self serving but it meant you had to operate on a wink and a smile until it was obvious. I like the version of Collin that isn't intentionally trolling, obviously.

 

Actually when the RB breaks one for a long gain or score, it's pretty darn exciting. The quick outs to Smitty aren't much different then a run play either. But running with little or no gain is indeed pretty dull.