Minter

collin, my bad NFL.com has him playing strong according to thier depth charts.

 

HeadCase:
I honestly don't know what the future holds. I don't want to see WW go either, as I think he's one of the most consistent performers on our defense, and inconsistency is one of our biggest weaknesses on that side of the ball. But at the same time, I do think that TD has a chance to be a much better WLB than Spoon could ever be, and I've been dying to get a big-hitting playmaker at linebacker. Personally I think it's most likely that if Davis is shifted to WLB next year, that Minter will go back to SS (where he is better suited), and we'll have others fight it out for FS. Then again, I'm certainly not saying that Davis won't stay at SS. He might. The team might change its mind, or they might already want to keep him at SS if they can get Spoon extended. I simply don't know.

As for Branch, his speed is legit, but I agree with B&B about his questionable reaction time. He's decent, but I've always been strenuously opposed to liking or disliking guys on the basis of their 40 time. It just doesn't translate to football very much (although 10 yard times are useful, and 20s to a lesser extent, but I'd really like times with pads on).


Black&Blue:
I think that Minter and Davis is better than Branch and Minter, but I'd say the same thing about Branch and Davis (at least strictly in terms of performance, as I certainly admit that Minter brings toughness and leadership intangibles that Branch most definitely would not). I don't necessarily think that Minter at FS is a "huge weakness," because we will play conservatively in the secondary and will shelter him much like we always have with our free safeties, but I'm still uncomfortable with it. TD has to get on the field, but as soon as we drafted him I just couldn't envision an ideal way to do it this season.


Chipshot:
I've been in some academic journals, but I'm betting you don't read many anthropology articles. That's going to be my full-time career pretty soon, though. Oh, and I also do fantasy baseball.


homer2k79:
You're right, they do. Maybe they have switched positions and I simply haven't heard about it, but TSN, Fox, and pretty much everyone else have Marcus Washington as their SLB. That's what he played last year for them. Arrington had played SLB earlier, in part because the Redskins didn't have anyone else with the size to do so, but the main reason they signed Washington (who may be the league's best SLB) away from Indianapolis was so that Arrington play full-time at WLB where he has more ability to operate as a play-maker (paraphrasing their words, as reported by TSN).

 

you wright about FF in Anthropology journals?

 

Heh. But seriously, the focus of my Masters in Cultural Anthropology is professional sports (though more baseball than any other sport). I imagine most of you can guess that the academic types look down their noses at sports, so it hasn't been the easiest of roads, but I've enjoyed it thus far. How that affects where I ended up working is something else altogether (whether it's with a university or in the corporate sector).

 

Panther's historian,....are there many corporate anthropologists?

 

That's not lying. I've felt that he's stronger than he lifted, but yeah, the BP stat does concern, by itself. I do find it funny that, since you're basically looking for a reason to call me a liar, that you're picking statements that are rough parallels, not even the same basic thought. He can have a BP that doesn't indicate strength (just as did Marcus Spears).

So a group of Panthers officials outlined their plan for Davis? Suddenly, this type stuff is face value not lip service? About as convenient as you deciding what's right and wrong in something you're obviously upset about.

I don't see it that way at all. I see them pushing him to a SLB spot in nickel as an indication they want to see what he can do there. Whether it means just at LB, just on the TE, or specifically at SLB? I can't say. But the funny thing is, I'm not willing to write any of them off, and you are.

And yet he made more impact, IMO, than Witherspoon or Morgan. I'm sure you'll disagree.

I don't agree. I didn't feel he was a good fit for the C2 WLB, nor was he ever as good with the Saints as he could've been. I do feel he was at his career best on the field here, in 02.

 

Without looking to ridicule him, yeah. He writes about himself on a website named after himself. I don't think he'd bother telling you, and sometimes I see him being most fascinated talking about himself and what he thinks of himself.

I decided long ago that wanting to make money, trying to make money, in something I have a true passion for? It's a destructive path that eventually lends itself toward killing off that passion. I can have my passions of music, and of football, without dedicating my life to coaching (which I could do), writing (which I do, only to express thought), or go and play music on the road all the time. I've done, with the exception of coaching, all of these things to get through school. I was able to get out without debt, and I had a good time doing them, just as I had a good time crewing with low level race teams back when I was an insufferable redneck. Now, I've got time for my passions to be passions, without having to rely upon them as income.

 

Matt Campbell played LT a year before he played G.

 

you're correct.....looking that up I found this from 1998....thank god things have changed around here:

From CNNSI 1998 draft coverage:

Position Breakdowns


QB - There is still a lot of speculation that the Panthers will try to deal QB Kerry Collins before the April draft. Collins had a falling out with management and the team after his off the field problems during last year's preseason. He lost his confidence and never really rebounded. Both the team and Collins could benefit from a change of scenery. Veteran backup Steve Beurlein will stay on as the #2 QB. #3 Shane Matthews is a veteran journeyman type who signed on for another year.

RB - Fred Lane from Lane College came out of nowhere last season. He was an undrafted FA, but you could tell he was a special kind of player after a solid preseason. Lane's emergence has allowed the team to shop 1996 1st rd. pick Tim Biakabatuka. Biakabatuka got off to a rough start his rookie season after injuring his knee after a long messy holdout. There is speculation that he may be dealt to the Arizona Cardinals for a 4th rd. pick. If Biakabatuka is dealt, look for the Panthers to select a RB somewhere in the upcoming draft.

WR - This unit has not produced as hoped. Mark Carrier was re-signed after the season had already started, and was the leading receiver before getting injured late in the season. Carrier is a FA this season, but has been re-signed. Rocet Ismail had a great preseason in 1997, but disappeared when they needed him. Mushin Muhammad has a chance, but hasn't developed. If he was as good as he thinks he is, he would have been to the Pro Bowl in his first two NFL seasons. Other than Carrier, the only bright spot was rookie WR Rae Carruth... he has exc. speed, and looks like he will become a bigtime playmaker in the NFL.

TE - Wesley Walls is one of the best pass catching TE's in the NFL, but isn't getting open as easily as he used to. The main reason is because of the lack of consistency from the WR corp. Walls sees a lot of double coverage, especially on 3rd down, where they love to go to him. If the WR's don't step up this season, Walls' numbers may continue to drop. Backup Walter Rasby is a better blocker than receiver, and #3 TE Kris Mangum spent the season on the practice squad. TE should not be a huge area of concern in the draft.

OL - Pretty solid unit when healthy... the key is keeping LT Balke Brockermeyer and LG Matthew Campbell healthy at the same time. Campbell was a RFA that was signed to a long term deal when the club matched the Dolphins' offer sheet. Campbell can play LT or LG. LT Brockermeyer hasn't reached his full potential, and this may be his last season in Carolina, as he will be a UFA at season's end. FA OG Corbin Lacina was signed to replace Matt Elliott who is now in Atlanta. They may look for a young LT in the draft that they can start grooming should Brockermeyer leave via FA.

DL - They may have improved some with the addition of DE Sean Gilbert, but doubt he is even close to being worth what they paid for him... in 5 NFL seasons, Gilbert has led his team to 0 playoff appearances. The Redskins ranked 30th vs. the run when he last played in 1996. After a year long holdout, expect Gilbert to be rusty at best. Unless they plan on using him at NT, they have big problems there. Greg Kragen should probably retire, but he is their only quality player at NT. Even with Gilbert, they need some help from Mike Fox and Shawn King. King has potential, if he can put his personal problems behind him.

LB - Should be an outstanding unit this season... the return of OLB Kevin Green allows them to set their defense in the formation they had hoped to last season. Greene's long holdout and eventual release forced them to play Michael Barrow at OLB, instead of ILB. Greene is a fiery competitor... he should be able to get other OLB Lamar Lathon

remotivated this season. They keep trying to get rid of ILB Carlton Bailey, but he still plays at a fairly good level. The loss of RFA Andre Royal, may force them to keep Bailey around again. The team is hoping 1997 rookie ILB Kinnon Tatum comes on this season.

DB - A deep and talented DC group with the addition of FA Doug Evans from Green Bay. Evans will join the already talented duo of DC's Eric Davis and Tyrone Poole. Poole has been inconsistent at times, and he could be dealt before the draft. The team also added nickle DC Leonard Wheeler, formerly of the Vikings. Their biggest hole right now is at SS, where RFA Chad Coata was signed to an offer sheet by the New Orleans Saints, that the Panthers opted not to match. A worst case scenario would have FS Mike Minter sliding over to SS, with Leonard Wheeler starting at FS... Wheeler played some safety when he was a member of the Cincinnati Bengals. Look for them to draft a SS in the 1st or 2nd rd. of the upcoming draft.

ST - PK John Kasay didn't get as many opportunities last season, but is still one of the best in the NFL. PT Ken Walter was up and down in his first full NFL season. Their biggest offseason move on ST's was re-signing KOR man Michael Bates... Bates is one of the best KOR men in the game, and is a threat to go the distance any time he touches the ball.

 

yeah, Capers outright neglected the line from 97 on, save for a scrub guard or two (and really didn't do great things before that, either - two tackle busts and Brockermeyer being the "effort"). Seifert didn't do enough - Clarence Jones should've been replaced in 00. Terry was enough for a while, and he did draft some raw guys, but it took forever to get James on the field fulltime and Jordan outright busted. Both of them were woefully underrepresenting the line for their respective purposes, and overall, and their teams often showed negatively for it. I can give some credit back to the 01 signings, but paying Steussie so much in retrospect wasn't great (and yet, still better than most things that were added to this line from 97 on).