SCO96

In 2023 Burns had 8.0 sacks in 16 games for the Panthers. In 2024 he had 8.5 sacks in 17 games for the Giants. He got that whopping contract from NY and finished with fewer sacks than Dexter Lawrence (9.0), a DT. The Giants were also a worse team this year than we were. I think we clearly made the right decision to let Burns go. He's a good player...not a great/elite player. His presence did not make a significant impact on NY, which is one of the worst teams in the NFL heading into 2025. We were wise to move on from him.

I'm hoping Bryce and the offense show out today and we lose a 41-38 thriller at the buzzer.

I'm a bit baffled myself on the lack of production from our TE's not just in recent games, but the season. Sanders 30 rec, 307 yards, 1 TD Tremble 21 rec, 204 yards, 1 TD Thomas 03 rec, 7 yards, 0 TD Not surprised at the latter guys lack of production. It's what we have come to expect from him. I thought Sanders would have simply averaged 3 catches a game he should have equaled that production by himself over the course of a 17 game season. I thought he would have been more of a redzone arget as well. I don't know if its the scheme, the guys aren't getting open, or the QB's don't trust them. If the passing game is going to thrive going forward we need to get more production from the TE position. You would think that next to Theilen, the TE would be option #2, especially in short yardage situations.

In theory I agree with you. Unfortunately, the Carolina Panther draft history in recent years is terrible. I'd be terrified if we got an extra pick in round 2 because I'd be almost willing to bet a month's salary we'd pick the wrong player. I think I'd jump out of my bedroom window if we picked a WR.

I wouldn't go into this draft thinking we'll be able to make a trade inside the top 10. Recent history is showing that these moves don't really pan out. The 49ers gave up a kings ransom to draft Trey Lance. He couldn't beat out a QB taken in the 7th round. Lance is now buried on the Dallas roster behind 2 other QBs. Moving up to get Bryce didn't exactly put us up over the hump either and we lost our best receiver and draft capital to do so. I don't see a player in this draft worth giving up a 2026 1st round, and a 2025 2nd round, and possibly a a 2027 2nd round. One of the worst things to happen was the creation of the draft chart. it's way to expensive to make deals at the TOP THE DRAFT. If some idiot GM approaches us with a deal then we should listen. But, I think GMs (especially the ones on bad teams) may start to wise up and just let the chips fall where they may.

Burrow also plays in a stacked division come to think of it. The AFC North sent 3 teams to the playoffs last season...and could do so again if the Bengals beat Pittsburgh this weekend and then they get a little help. That Bengals defense is almost as bad as ours. They're another team that couldn't spend their entire draft on defense (or most of it) and not catch to much flak for doing so.

Perhaps I should have said make the team "better at their position". Sanders, TMaC, Mason, Hunter, or Carter would be an immediate upgrade (talentwise) for the team and would start immediately...unless they're busts...which could happen.

That really is the foundation in the modern NFL Good point. Most athletes aren't afraid of competition. I think what me and and the other poster was saying is that Sanders' chances at post-season success is going to be a little bit more difficult because of the teams he has to beat just to make it the playoff out his own division To make matters worse he'd be playing for the Raiders. When I grew up they were literally the "bad boys of the NFL". There truly was "Raider Mystique". Now, the Raiders are an irrelevant franchise. I can't remember a year since 2001 where I went into a season thinking "You'd better watch out for the Raiders this season". Something is amiss with that franchise from the top down with the ownership and front office. Having a guy like Brady coming in from NE could be just what they need. But, they have to get the right HC and GM before they can turn things around.

Look at our own Greg Olsen. He goes to Chicago. His HC, Mike Martz, has little interest in throwing to TE's in his offense. The GM trades Olsen to Carolina for a 3rd round pick. You can make a strong argument that Olsen is a HOF caliber TE. He'd possibly be a forgotten player had he stayed with Bears, who haven't had a true threat at that position since Mike Ditka played there in the 1960's.

Sanders and Brock Bowers aren't enough to get the Raiders past the Chiefs, Chargers, or even the Broncos. The Chiefs have been to the AFC title game the past 6 seasons. They've only failed to get to the SB in two of those seasons (2019 & 2022). Unless they get upset in the Divisional Round they're be there for 7 straight seasons...with homefield advantage yet again. Harbaugh wins everywhere he goes...college...pros...back to college...back to pros. Payton's teams are always going to score points, even when the defense is subpar, so they are never an easy out. The Raiders are can't seem to get the HC position right and overall they aren't very good at drafting players. Things could change with Tom Brady in the building. But unless some drastic changes occur they will continue to flounder at the bottom of the AFC West for the next foreseeable future.

I'm never a fan of "tanking". I can see maybe not going all out in the last game of the season, but I'd never try to lose games on the back end of a season to get a top 5 pick 1) The guy you want could be a bust. 2) He could get hurt. 3) The lack of talent or poor coaching could hinder his development 4) Or, he could just be a bad fit for the team and would do better elsewhere I remember the years where some people on this board were in favor of "tanking for Tua" or "tanking for Trevor". I don't think either of those guys has shown proven to be elite QBs. Tua was looking like a bust until Flores moved on and the Dolphins hired a coach who could maximize Tua's ability. Lawrence is still young and could improve, but we are all waiting to see him live up to the hype that he was the next great QB in the NFL. Where a player goes is much more important than where he is chosen in the draft.

That division is brutal. They may end up sending 3 teams to the playoffs this season. You can make an argument that Mahomes isn't' even in the prime of his career age-wise. Herbert and Nix are younger than Mahomes. And as you pointed out, there a 3 VERY COMPETENT coaches in the AFC West. I would not want to play the Chiefs, Chargers, and Broncos 2x a year as a rookie. Then again, it may make any QB better almost immediately having to face those teams out of the gate.

Morgan, Beason, Kuechly,.....TBD

I was thinking the same thing. I understand his reasoning, but if he comes out and says that SS won't play for so-and-so franchise I wouldn't be surprised to see SS drop in the draft. I'm looking for the Raiders to make a deal (either overtly or covertly) to draft S. Sanders. He's already got a relationship with Tom Brady, who is a minority owner with the team. The Raiders DESPARATELY need a franchise QB. I think the Sanders family and the NFL would be glad to see him end up in Las Vegas.

I agree that you have more versatility with the 3-4. But, unless you have a mountain playing NT and a couple of studs playing on each side at OLB you are going to have a hard time stopping the run. You also need some bigger ILB to take on those blockers at the guard position. I honestly thing they should go with the 4-3. I'm ok with the 3-4 if you can find the right players to run the scheme. I don't think our defenses have been nearly as good since we converted in to the 3-4 in 2019, and that's largely b/c we've never got the right talent to fill the front 7.

I may get flamed for this...and I'm sure Deion doesn't want his kid going to the Jets...but if A-Rod stayed for 1 more year, playing behind a HOF QB for a year and watching the game from the sideline for his rookie season wouldn't be the worst scenario for the SS.

Everyone of those players would make us instantly better.

Agreed. This team is woefully lacking in talent, especially on the defensive side of the ball. A shrewd GM should be able to walk away with 3 starters on defense in 2025 just by picking the best available defensive player on the board when when our number come up during the the first 2 days of the draft. We could even find a starting center to replace Corbett. A stat I posted a couple of weeks ago showed that 50% of the CENTERS in the NFL are found on day 3 of the draft or are undrafted. Cade Mays has been better than I thought, but you could probably find a better player to play the position in round 4.

This has be the worst defense the Panther have fielded in their 30 yr history. Poor pass rush, poor pass coverage, poor tackling, etc. If Carolina took the best defensive player on the board in every round of the draft I don't see how anyone could be upset.

I love the post. I’d like to add one thing to it. In recent years we have also suck “player development”. We’ve had some talented players come thru Carolina that have failed to impress while they were here, only to flourish in different environments. Two of the best QBs in the NFC this season (Mayfield and Darnold) were on our roster…at the SAME TIME…and we got nothing out of them. Even Teddy Brigewater put a career high in TDs the year after he left us in Denver. Jeremy Chinn almost won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2020. The next season they changed the way he was deployed and he seemed to regress every year after that. I hope this new regime will start developing more of the young players that are added to the roster going forward.

Current draft order NYG, NE, JAX, TN, CLE, LV, CAR. We need to ask ourselves "what is the biggest need of those teams heading into the draft"? And, "What positions do we know are not major needs for the teams above?" JAX is terrible, but we know they won't be drafting a QB. The Patriots won't be either. The Raiders and Giants definitely need a QB. The Browns have one under contract, but he's been terrible since they signed him. I could see all 3 of them eyeing QB's. Hunter is a wild card. He could be the first player taken. Or, he could slip because some teams may not want to deal with his insistence on playing both ways. A team with a bad O-line may want to go LT TMAC is going to appeal to a team that needs a playmaker at WR. If CB is major need, I could see Will Thomas (or Hunter) coming off the board prior to our selection at #7. It's possible that Graham could fall into our laps. Then again we haven't factored FA into the equation. A lot of these teams will lure some players just because of the large amount of dollars they afford to play them and fix some needs before the draft. It's going to be an interesting off-season.

You know, that's not the ideal situation given all of our needs. But, if we could pick up a starter on defense in FA and nab 2 or 3 starters after the 1st round in the 2025 draft, I wouldn't be upset with that scenario. If Brown comes back healthy we've already gained 1 starter on the line. Let's say we find a safety or LB in FA. MHS831 had a good break down on who should be available after day 1. If we found a starting DE and DT to add up front we'd be significantly better at every level of the defense.

I missed most of the 3rd quarter. I just saw BY's stat line. It said he had 74 passing yards at end of the 3rd quarter. That's close to what he had when I had to leave the game at the end of the 2nd quarter. We'll never be competitive week in and week out if he can't put up better numbers than this.

JB had a first round grade in the eyes of a lot scouts based on HIS TALENT LEVEL. If not for the injury he would have gone higher in the draft, possibly between the middle and the end of round 1. To get him just before the 50th pick is a steal. He'd be on a 4 year deal. You can't even renegotiate until the end of the season 3. You're basically paying him nothing for 3 seasons. I don't buy into all back are interchangeable. No they're not. You have average backs, good backs, then your great-exceptional backs. The latter category doesn't grow on trees. If a back is special it pays to keep them. The key is knowing the difference between the first two categories and the third one.

It's hard to argue with your logic. Ladd seems tailor made to play in a system with a QB like BY; and getting a franchise center in round2 would have given us easily one of the top 10 interior lines...if not top 10 offensive lines...in the NFL.