stratocatter

I wasn’t measuring wins this year, I simply wanted or hoped to see tangible progress in performance level, competitiveness etc. I expected it to come from the OL, the passing game, and our secondary. Or I was looking at them. Take Wilkes out of that secondary room I say bets are off there but the OL is rounding into good form. And the WRs, well at least we aren’t watching Anderson clang balls off his hands and chest. So that is better by a thin hair. A team that has been so far down is going to still lose games when they are ready to win, which we are seeing a little of. They aren’t quite ready but you really can’t overstate how big turning a weakness into a strength can turn out. Which is that OL. That is why I say pointing up. edit: I am gonna paraphrase John Fox: if you aren’t getting worse you’re getting better. I think we have stopped digging the hole at least.

At the same time the arrow is still trending up. Granted that isn’t saying much. Even the best teams pull stinkers. Look at the Eagles last night. That WAS about the worst I have seen, though, from our offense. Right up there with the first quarter of opening game this year.

Me too. I mean, you Have to be able to run the ball and play defense in the late season and playoffs especially if you do not get home field advantage. History is littered with the (high flying pass happy) teams that looked great on turf only to go NE or GB or somewhere in January and it is all over. You Have to be able to do that especially against the best teams which is who you will be facing. Knowing that, believing that, doesn’t preclude a coach from being creative in the offensive game using all of the levers available to him. It doesn’t preclude a defensive minded coach from recognizing he needs a modern NFL offense. If Wilkes is too close minded to understand that then sure, pass him by. The biggest thing is getting the buy in from the players, coaching them smart and tough, and identifying the talent in the first place. I feel like if Wilkes was in charge and they gave him a modern stud QB he would be able to figure it out as far as who to get to coach him and design an offense around him. Too early to call this.

Like anyone was gonna turn down all that crazy Tepper money just because he wasn’t ready for the NFL. He was 100% certain he was ready for that NFL money. End of story.

Point is, they gave the Broncos a lot of motivation. Extra. They shouldn’t need it, but you know these guys use it. Play on the field, win or lose, that is where the truth is but I did not like hearing what I was hearing during the week. We did have the better team.

That last sentence is very true and why I cautioned, caution when replacing him. He does bring a little higher floor than most, you know you are gonna get base level competency. His ceiling is what it is. He let his players talk like the SB was already won all week prior to being whipped by the team they were talking about, the one time he went as a head coach. Anyone remember that? Maybe if he ever goes again, he won’t let them get overconfident.

Ron pissed some people off, for good reason. If they want to call him out for being a company cuck or dullard then let them. He parlayed playing for the Ditka Bears into a DC job eventually, that he was very good at. He parlayed that into two HC jobs, hired by dysfunctional franchises, mostly because he is a hell of a babysitter for spoiled immature man children. And that he looks like a badass, rather than a cuck. Good for him. Very sorry about his mother, of course.

Not that simple but I sort of think both. Feel like the offense that people complained about so much was tailored for Cam’s abilities. Just a suspicion because I never saw how he did with other systems. edit: I don’t have a ton of respect for Ron since he showed his cuckedness by letting Tepper bully him into changing to a 34 to save his job. Give it up, Ron.

So, agreed on the worst stretch in team history. The people who derided claiming the three straight divisions because one was 7-8-1, miss those days don’t let them snow you. They would take them back right now. We, before this streak, had a single 3 year run of losing records. Fox’s last year and Cam/Rivera’s first two. Except for Fox’s last season they were still exciting to watch. Kind of like what we have seen lately but with more hope due to being on the ascent and watching Cam tease us with his abilities, we were looking ahead. Now, it is just being so thirsty for decent football that a taste gets people going. I disagree that people are rationalizing that the top QBs in the draft suck just to justify tanking though. It is possible that no one can see the short one as Brees and just aren’t impressed by what’s left, value wise. I don’t disagree with them, philosophically. I believe I’d tank like hell though if that next Manning kid looks good in school.

I have a feeling Wilkes may do that but not this week. Mayfield has played more he gets the nod. I want to watch Darnold if only to convince myself there is no way he with him. With the line, with the running game, all that stuff.

He is better than what we have had here for years including broke Cam. That’s like 5 years. The OL is a strength now or turning into one, when you have that and decent WRs which seems to be that we do, you don’t need a pro bowl RB. What we have is fine. Yeah I would do it.

That is the mark of a demanding perfectionist if you want me to be honest. Is that what you want to be? That’s who you are? This is why I would not discuss Rhule blah blah with you early in the year. It wouldn’t be a discussion it would be a lecture, or a point scoring exercise. For what freaking purpose? So you can feel good about yourself, that you were smart enough to find JR’s every fault? Like with Hurney (but not Gettleman) every damn thread his name came up People know what is true btw. They know what you have showed them. It is all there. Imma stop now. Just saying when the discussion veers a certain way, you might look to self scout.

What the hell do yo7 want from people? He brought a team to this NFL no man’s land split between teams 100s of miles apart in different directions. I had an impression you were old enough to remember all of that. I don’t really sweat the NFL now, it is a distraction, but it was the best thing that happened in the Carolinas since they split into two states in my book. And the second year, we are where? Man I hated that I worked in Atlanta those first two years because the only games I could see were vs Atlanta and because we were in the NFCW a SF game or two. because SF was the poo then. There were many good times. Many. The team never had a stretch like the Entire Tepper Era has been. Granted the Cam contract year coming and his injuries hamstrung us as far as planning but damn, JR had noth8ng like this.bHe was a former player. Take the generation gap out of it (which I understand is particularly hard for some people), and yep he meddled. Hurney was not that bad all by himself. Neither was any other GM. 90% of NFL owners meddle. It’s their toy and their right, but it makes it hard to judge a GM. All of that taken, the thing with the sons, deciding not to leave the team to them, is when things started declining but we had Cam in his good years for a lot of that. Still, add it up. And in closing, I did not say the best, great, etc. I will stand on pretty good though. He was a guy that answered every fan letter, in cursive! Ask me how I know. Whatever else people say he was, he was this guy too. Was *I* ever frustrated with, and by him? What do you think? In case you guess wrong, hell yes. Cheap in a lot of ways. Stubborn. Old fashioned. Same stuff people say about most old folks ha ha. But we are having this discussion as a direct result of his work. Tepper has a long way to go. I wish he would go a long way away. Oh well lol. And I am gonna put a preemptive statement just in case because ai know how people are: my Tepper opinions have zero to do with JR being forced to sell. I am not that obsessed. In summary: JR=pretty good most of his tenure, I would have preferred that whatever his crime was, was put out there for us to see, Tepper can’t carry his shoeshine kit as we used to say. So far. Maybe Tepper’s arc will take a different trajectory and will begin to ascend. We can only hope.

Familiar behavior, the negotiations are underway now, but I thought Tepper was in concert with the leanings of the DOJ. Why would they go against him?

And I guess those parameters allow a player to be called Pro Bowl, if they make it a single time and never again. Counts the same as a perennial pro bowler.

They have really put out some ugly football, all year. Lots of it.

You could be right. And I wasn’t there to know if he did or didn’t say whatever he is alleged to have said. Which is really my point. If I am gonna condemn a guy who did so much for the football fans in our area, and was a pretty good owner for a while before things kind of went wrong, if I am gonna condemn him I want to know the facts and make that decision myself.

Yes actually, shamefully, he did. I have zero respect for him. edit: as far as JR, sorry. I have been sexually harassed at work too by a gay supervisors at 20 years old. You dea”with it or quit and get a different job. Way of the world. as far as the racial stuff, I am still waiting to hear what he said, exactly, and to whom. Not defending it but how can you defend or condemn if you do not have the details?

And Goodell burned the tapes.

I am looking for the play I saw him loafing like hell on, on Sunday. For a balanced POV.

(Edit: this is for the offensive HC people) I just had a football epiphany: we need to hire Tom Brady to coach the Panthers. Let Leftwich coordinate. Or not. Doesn’t matter who really. Just get him someone he can work with. Brady is about the ultimate competitor. I have never posted anything praising Brady in my life trust me I hate the Patriots and their ‘way’ and all of it. But I watched him drive TB for the late win against LA and that guy knows offensive football. He is a man amongst boys on the field as far as understanding the game in real time. You want clock management and 2 minute efficiency to the finest degree, not HC buffoonery? I think that is your man. Everything he does on the field seems purposeful. Thinking a tstep ahead. I think he may be at a crossroads and if he jumps the football lifer way it could be the right time to move. He can’t play forever. He knows it. If he doesn’t go back with Giselle it ain’t like there are no hot female football fans in the Carolinas but I digress. If he doesn’t give up the football life he probably can’t go back to his marriage. If there is a window there when this transition is in process we need to stick our heads through it and get with him. Okay I am nuts right? I’d do it if I had the chance.

Yeah man there was some loafing that stood out to me. I hope the particular player I am thinking of got his ass reamed, Wilkes ain’t calling their names to the world but you have to think that is getting addressed one on one. That is one thing I like about Wilkes it seems like he will fall on the sword for his guys, old school style. There is something to that. I think we knew our LBs were basically crap compared to what we have seen over the years but it’s still hard watching it. And the sorry tackling. It is worse every year in the National Football League. I left Flag out but they are pushing it

Hey don’t stir it up on my account. I am just a low level fan with some time to kill trying to stay out of the real world. Foreman did a killer job last year and I was real surprised that the Panthers signed him. Pleasantly. But I am no analyst. I rewatch the free replays as I can find them.

Everything is whacked out on the Carolina Panthers 2022 football team. You have no idea what you will see from week to week. It makes it hard to know where the slack is. I don’t think it is Foreman being not good. If you saw him with Tenn last year you wouldn’t be up in his stuff about it. The offense is out of synch. Still.

Rhule. To get good NFL veteran coaches, you need to know some, first of all. Then, they need to know you and have enough respect to throw in with you. I think maybe he was lacking there. That is a big reason probably why retreads do well, they would be able to pull a staff.