d-dave

I haven't played since Rise of Isenguard. The story for that game was just amazing.

The HOF is so much a popularity contest. Smith was a competitive asshole. He's mellowed out in retirement, but the spice still comes out. You can't ever take that from him. On the field, he was a nightmare for defenders physically and getting in their heads. While no one can doubt that Smith was basically unstoppable, his biggest issue will be that he was such a jerk to so many of these guys. Out of most of these 90s-2010s WRs, who was arguably better, more clutch, or did more with less? No one. Of that era, he was the best. The other guys, they are greats in their own right, but they can't hold Steve Smith's jockstrap. He was the f'ing man when on the field.

Bravo I agree 100%. I mean, I'm a fan. I get invested in the team and games. But I don't let it ruin my life. I used to do that. It sucks. It sucked for my family. Why am I punishing anyone for the fact I got too caught up in the game. Instead, when things go south, I just rationalize it and move on. Know what I did after the Bucs caught the onside kick? I helped make some awesome oreo balls with my family. Know who cares less about the game? me I still love and care about my Panthers. I relish the feelings of wins, but I don't let the losses drag me down. While Rhule was still here, I would watch for a few players, but I didn't care much about the games. Wilks changed that, and it was great! But it's entertainment to us. It's lives for the players. I want all the guys in the NFL to make as much money as possible, to be safe and healthy as possible. Seeing what happened last night was just heartbreaking, and it puts it all in perspective. Enjoy things or don't. Just don't let it ruin you.

I'll say, the cupboard isn't bare here. There is talent, but it needs a lot of work. Harbaugh could be an incredible fit here and quite interesting as a coach. I just want a decision made. That's what I want.

Man, some of y'all are just laying all the blame at Steve Wilks feet like he spent the past three seasons setting this up. Also, Steve didn't make the trade decisions. Why would the INTERM coach do that? How is Steve Wilks to blame for SF playing well and lowering the value of those picks? How is Wilks responsible for Horn's injury? I mean, the timing sucked, but so does the timing of all injuries in the NFL. Save a lot of your vitriol for Scott Fitterer. Perspective: when was the last time you cared about late season Panthers football? 2017? It's been a good ride here. I'd rather win than lose because a few draft slots are pretty meaningless. Look, if we find THE GLORIOUS QB-SAVIOR, we can trade up for him. Duh. That's what teams do. Given the drafting pedigree of this team, would you rather have Brian Burns or 2-4 players who will not be as good as he is now? This year, the Rams suck so that traded draft pick is looking good. What about in 24-25? I think the Rams bounce back. Look at what happened when they put Baker in there? So at best I imagine those picks are middle first round, or later if they go back to the playoffs. I don't know what's going on in David Tepper's brain. I don't know who the next coach will be. I like that Wilks brought organization, toughness, and heart to the team. He was the anti-Rhule and it showed. Sunday versus the Saints will be what it will be. I know the team will try to win, and I'm fine with that. Some of y'all live in a Madden/Fantasy Football world.

I think there is a fair amount of "buyer beware" in the NFL HC market. I was looking to see the coaching fails over the past 12ish years, and I came across this: https://sports-teller.com/nfl-teams-with-most-head-coach-firings-since-2010/ It was last updated 10/22/22, but it's a good list and shows you the perils of the HC searching. For every successful NFL coach, there are dozens of failures. Some of the most successful coaches have come from both the defensive and offensive side of the game. While having a schematic advantage is really great: how many master play callers are there in the NFL? Andy Reid, Sean McVay, and Kyle Shanahan? Then there are some guys who are good, but haven't had enough time to really be consistent. Then you look at guys like Pete Carroll, Mike Tomlin, Mike Vrabel, Beli-cheat, Brandon Staley, Sean McDermott and John Harbaugh (ST). They all have defensive (ST for Harbaugh) backgrounds, yet are fielding successful/competitive teams with some offensive pizzaz. Looking at the hot lists of candidates, are we getting a master schemer? Or a coach who can lead, inspire, manage, and make good decisions when the game is on the line? I don't know, it's not my choice here. But I think Steve Wilks has the chops to be an NFL coach. I do like that a lot better than ending up with a Hackett or Rhule situation. We'll just have to see how it goes.

Wilk's Charlotte ties are great! Man, they make a fantastic story! Wilks tried to make chicken salad after the festering rot of Rhule's poo. That's a lot of good work. I think Wilks is a really good coach, and we could absolutely do worse, because it's happening right now. Now what does this mean for his future? I have no clue. In the interviews, he's going to have to articulate a plan to get better that is feasible. How does he improve the offensive production? How do we get better on defense? How would he handle a rookie QB? Who will he use as OC? Does Ben come back? There are a lot of hot and sexy choices out there, and we have an owner who isn't afraid to open his checkbook. It's going to be interesting to see what happens. If Wilks does become the full time HC, it's really going to take him working with Scott and the others to build the talent he wants. I won't say "it'll make us instantly better" or "set us back 5 years." Both are hyperbolic message board nonsense. As we've seen with Denver - picking the "next big thing" OC isn't always successful. Even O'Connell in Minny is having some growing pains after getting shellacked by the Packers.

Counter Point: How has it felt to have meaningful football in December/January for the first time since 2017? Pretty darn good. The reality is that most of us were hoping to win yesterday, win the division this weekend, and be ready to give the Cowboys the beating of their lives. It's not going to happen, didn't happen, and it sucks. While I have no problem giving opinions about Wilks or coaches, some of y'all get worked into a lather about who will coach next year. It's out of our hands. We can have our preferences, but chill out. As the kids say, go touch some grass =P Wilks has done a really good job in a short time period taking the poo stain of a team that went 1-5 under Rhule, cleansing his BS and building a tough football team. That means something there of course. Does that make him the defacto coach? No. There is still the Roney Rule that must be observed, and a lot of soul searching.

I feel like a broken record: but it depends on who is the coach next year. How in love are they with a player? Can they make this player alter the franchise? After SF gave up the farm for Tray Lance, teams are going to expect similar compensation. If Chicago doesn't get the haul they want, they can still pick a franchise altering player and not look back.

That is a very difficult question. The main issue with QBs is going to be coaching/play calling. You need a coach and/or coaches to make it work for them. If a guy has talent but poor coaching, they will struggle. Good coaching can make anyone look great (cough SF!). The guys who can play well no matter what are extremely rare and the outliers. Who is going to be the coach next year? What offensive changes are going to happen? Those need to be figured out along with these last two games.

I think Norman will be a good add to the secondary room, and can be used for limited snaps versus top wrs at important moments.

Looks great, doesn't he? Now put him in Jacksonville. Or here. Or New Orleans. As others have said, he looks great, and he's doing a good job, BUT he's in the most QB friendly system ever. When you have an elite play calling HC (Shanahan, McVey, Reid), they can make nearly anyone look good. Purdy is playing well, within the system, but so far he hasn't had to go toe to toe with a rip roaring NFL team. Can he go drive for drive with any of the best offenses in the NFL? Not yet. I will also say his outside throw float so I don't think he's got particularly good arm strength.

Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu! Man, after spending tons of time in Lord of the Rings Online's Moria, I can't wait to see it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@VarkingDude, I'm so jelly That's awesome!

I don't think Seattle lets him go. They will sign him to a short term, lucrative deal, and look for a high talent developmental QB later in the draft to develop. They are a fun watch, and he's a great story. I don't think there's that easy of an upgrade for Seattle over Geno.

That's exactly what I was thinking. He's a proven commodity running the ball, but his pass protection issues (showed up Sunday) are going to be an issue when the real games are on the line. I really like watching him hammer a defense, but let's not go crazy there.

My critique of the story was not so much for the lack of adaptation, but more for the pacing. It seemed as if very little happened each episode. And some bits like the "let's all fight the elf" are tired and silly. I don't care how good and magical you are, you aren't beating back 6-8 guys with sharp blades. I get it's a fun trope, but it really didn't feel great. I completely see the chess board thing. There's several cool stories (and tragic ones) that will happen in the near future. I hope we get some great payoff! BTW - Lady Desi, Sophia Nomvete, popped up in Wednesday on Netflix and I fanboied out! My wife was like "You are such a dork!" Yeah, the problem with the Hobbit films was that they were pre-produced by Guillermo del Toro. He had his own vision. Then he left the project, and it was up to Peter Jackson to take all the partially done things and make them work. Which is partially why it feels so disjointed. I hate that because the cast was exceptional, the post was fantastic, and though overstuffed, it was a really fun trip through some of the less explored areas of Middle Earth. I'm with you, I can still watch the Hobbit films, despite how much abuse they did to the OG text.

That's freaking cool @Varking! Congratulations on the wild and awesome experiences! On a related note: I will miss the guy who played Adar. He was great! My hope is that they do take some of the feedback from season 1, and improve the show. I mean, it's already just beautiful to look at, and the story is already there (Tolkien). I'm not saying they have the hew more closely to the books, but rather get back some some good character development and more personally impactful plots. It was just really inconsistent. I still loved the show despite it's flaws. It's just MORE Middle Earth and I can't get enough of it. I'm saving up my airline miles to get some Shire ABnB

I'm not sure. You have to go with the player you love. We don't know who our next HC is. Will Fitts survive? Those are pretty important questions. Regardless, if there's a QB you like, you move heaven and earth to get them. Look at how Mahomes and Allen were drafted. Trades to get them. So that's what I think should happen. Get the guy you want, you love, you want to build your franchise around no matter the cost. We know how expensive it is NOT to have a franchise guy who you can build your team around.

I'm going to say "I don't know!" There are four more games. I think Steve has done a great job despite being set up to fail. Like @TheWiz said, he FITS really well. I agree that's important. Steve Wilks has shown that he is a real NFL coach. He's taken whatever Matt Rhule put together and molded into a tough ass team (that's what Rhule always wanted) that's making a playoff run. Who would have thought that after that SF debacle? As much as I was on board for an offensive wunderkinder earlier, more and more I'm down for Wilks in 2023. Wilks has learned when and how he needs to be more hands on. Do you think McAdoo would be running these jumbo packages without Steve there telling him what he needs? Look up at Carolina North. They hired our defensive coordinator as HC, and they have one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL. So that's not terrible. Bill Belichick is considered one of the best HCs (and cheaters) of all time, was a defensive guy. Is there an Andy Reid/McVey/Shannanhan out there who can be the cornerstone for our offense for 10 years? At the end of the day, you need to find a coach. Some will bring those X and O's advantage, others will require their coordinators to do it. It's above my paygrade. While we are making a lot of progress, there is still a TON of work to do, starting with finding a HC and QB. No matter how good you are, you need that high level QB to be successful in the NFL.

I'm in the "good for Baker" camp. He was great here as a teammate, did everything he could to help out. The offensive system sucks. It was not suited to Baker at all. Last night, he did a LOT of play action, hitting the middle of the field on intermediate passes. That's his strength. McVay played to his strengths. Man, it's almost as if coaching is a major contributing factor to the success of a QB. Good for Baker. Hopefully he plays the Rams down in the draft and is able to feel redeemed as he moves to his next stop.

It's going to depend on our next coach. The athletic talent is tantalizing. Dude has all of the tools. Were he struggles related to a lack of talent and execution on the team or how much of that was on his own? I actually made an effort to watch some Florida ball this year for him specifically. I have no idea =P Like you can see the tools. Man, he's got some gifts! But I saw a bunch of times when he's throwing layups where he missed a dude by 10 feet. How much of that is on him versus the play or his teammate? That's what makes picking a QB hard. If we drafted him, I'd be excited for him and us. But again, I have no idea how it's going to go for him in the run up to the draft. Like most QBs, he'll be pushed up.

Y'all do realize that we can move in the draft to get a QB? Both KC and Buffalo traded up for their franchise guys. We can do that too. It's not the end of the world so long as you make the right decision. Ask former players how cool they are with the idea of tanking? How many of them, who have families to feed, are going to say "yeah, let me make it harder to earn money by playing badly or just not playing" so a 21 year old kid can come in and save they day all by themselves? This team is not that terrible. Sure, they have lots of areas to fix, including the QB this off season, but putting your entire franchise future on a top 10 pick is a bit much, even for the huddle. Some of y'all just need to chill out.

The market will correct itself. If Disney blows a bunch of money on shows that fail, that's their pocketbook. They have to be smart.

It's all going to depend on who the next HC is. If Sam plays really well, we win games, and he makes plays, then I have no problem with making him a backup. I also have no problem letting him go with everyone else and starting fresh. I just want to know who our coach is in 2023...