Completed GM Run Mock

Completely agree.

It HAS to be the lines. It has to be. And I fucking have a massive man crush on Mendenhall, but I will shit if we take him, but we wont. We wont.

Itll be Williams, Clady or Harvey, assuming the other more known guys get taken earlier.

At this point....Williams is my guy.

 

Well RB this early isn't exactly a need. At least it wasn't as bad as taking a LB in the first round like this nationwide draft at ESPN

 

Whats the over/under on linemen taken in 08 by Carolina?

 

i disagre

 

no more than 3 and no less than 6

 

I went into this mock with the mindset of BPA at positions of need. To me it's obvious that that was the way the Panthers conducted the 2007 draft. We didn't need a WR in the second...we certainly didn't need a OC in the second, but those were truly value picks. Picking those two positions with high talent made Keyshawn and Hartwig expendable, and saved the team money this season and next season. That's the way teams build from the draft. Rookies seldom start in this league, unless the team is in a rebuilding year. The last time Carolina had more than one (2) rookie in the starting lineup on a first game roster was 2004. Before that was 2001 (3) and that was truly a rebuilding year.

Looking at the Panthers projected depth chart, I established positions of need and then looked for value at those positions. Some positions required multiple players to fill (DT and OL) and some look to be okay as is (CB and ILB).

Lastly, remember that this mock took almost two weeks to complete. Holt was not a Panther, and we had no one at FS. Hackett wasn't a Panther, and Moose and Jarrett were slated as our only #2s. Stewart didn't have turftoe surgery required and was clearly the second best RB in the Draft. (He's still a first rounder, but I think Mendenhall has passed him as second best.)

Okay, I'll try to answer concerns:

I'm not locking on a RB. I just predict that there will be more value at RB than at another position that we need. In this mock, that was the case.

I'm not a scout, and I don't study film of these guys, but I do believe that Stewart and Mendenhall will be better at their positions than Williams will be at his. Of the five professional scouting boards and services I've used in making my board, all have agreed with this thinking.

RB is a huge huge huge area of need. Carolina has a starter, but how can you know he will be solid? What would happen if he was injured? (2004 and 2005 postseason flashback). Even if he started every game, they need another RB. During Fox's tenure, the starting RB has had only 52% of the carries! Who's getting the rest? Toejam? Haynes? I sure hope not.

Here's my top 13. I knew I'd get one of these guys.

1. Chris Long, Virginia, DE


2. Glenn Dorsey, LSU, DT


3. Jake Long, Michigan, OT


4. Sedrick Ellis, USC, DT


5. VernonGholston, OhioSt., DE


6. Darren McFadden, Arkansas, RB


7. Ryan Clady, Boise St., OT


8. Jonathan Stewart, Oregon, RB


9. Chris Williams, Vanderbilt, OT


10. Rashard Mendenhall, Illinois, RB


11. DRC, Tennessee St., CB


12. Derrick Harvey, Florida, DE


13. Phillip Merling, Clemson, DE​

Since then, I've dropped Stewart to #11, so if it started today, Williams would be the pick. I still rank Mendenhall higher than Williams, but not as much as a healthy Stewart was.

OL is the biggest need on the team. But again, value.

Look at the projected starting lineup.

RG - Keydrick Vincent
LG - Travelle Wharton
RT - Jeremy Bridges
LT - Jordan Gross
C - Ryan Kalil
Most would agree that Vincent is the weakest link and the odd man out. If a OT or OG is drafted, Vincent would be the easiest to supplant.

Of all those mock picks, McGlynn is the one that would have the best shot of being an immediate starter. Forget that he was picked in the 5th round. No way does that really happen. He will be gone by the end of the 3rd on draft day.

 

That's about as appealing as wearing jean shorts.

 

I agree with damn near everything in post #26.

 

Running back is not a big need. There is much more reason to think that DW will be solid than any back available to us in this year's draft. DW is a first round talent and he has had two years in our system. As far as depth goes, Toefield is pretty solid IMHO. He was just stuck behind a lot of good players in Jacksonville. He is also a "big back". Hoover should also get a few carries. I would like to see us add another back just for depth but not with a first round pick. Bottom line is that you are trying to replace DW without giving him a chance to show what he can do.

 

I don't see that here, though.

Fair enough, but the difference between then and now would only impact WR and FS - we really didn't need a rookie WR then, either. FS is still a place we could use a player at the right place.

Because you value the RBs very highly, I guess. I don't see them being that incredible, and honestly in Mendenhall and Stewart I don't see the multi-dimensionality that you'd want. Breakaway speed, passing game prolifics, outstanding elusive moves. Do you? If not, essentially you're drafting a guy on measurables only, and end up getting a guy at 13 that only does a few things well.

It's an area of need. It's not a "huge huge huge" area of need. A 3rd round player, who lacks the same well-rounded skills your pair would, would excel just as much with a better line. And we'd get other people better there too.

Were 3 OTs already gone? Even then, I do like Cherilus.

Vincent is a weaker link, but don't forget Bridges was benched and was just so barely adequate as a RT in 2006. So, in order to get a very good, one dimensional backup RB, we're starting two guys who are mediocre on the line, and that's not really improvement - and one of those two is last year's mistake. Bridges should be depth.

You'd be better off trying to sell the "Wharton at OT" theory, which is actually a bit more likely in this scenario, but it wouldn't change that we're essentially starting two mediocre players (a guard duo from amongst Vincent, Bridges, and Hangartner) of which you added little depth and nothing of significance. In that situation, if the decision is that Wharton is the starting LT, we really would need a guard in the 3rd at worst.

I don't see, despite the statements, that you valued OL that greatly. I appreciate the idea of not reaching that heavily, but you can't say in the end "well, sorry you got sacked, but we got some neat value."

But, it's your draft and I appreciate it being shared. You shared your top 15 without having to do so, so that's good stuff too.