KSpan

I must also say that your screen name is one of the best on here. A true classic.

Agreed overall but man, looked like 5 guys executing 3 different protection schemes there. Just complete and utter failure.

Teddy's in a great place for him - somewhere with a high-quality defense, some other offensive talent to do the heavy lifting, and that has been starved of even reasonable QB play for so long that his low-risk, high-percentage style looks amazing. It helps a lot that they've played the Division 2 of the NFL so far but with that defense Denver might sneak into the playoffs as a Wild Card (assuming the Chiefs wake the hell up) and bow out in the first or second round a la Alex Smith as the peak. For Denver fans, that will be amazing this year. No question though that Carolina is better off and I still speculate that Teddy drank his own Kool Aid and needed a dose of humility that he likely got after last season. He never should have been brought to Carolina in the first place but what's done is done and everyone is better off with him elsewhere. Sam is looking cautiously promising with plenty still to prove. it's encouraging that he seems to have already made some strides vs last year in NY.

Barry Switzer sure does, though.

But Fields said the game was slow for him...

Color me shocked.

Eh, little early for a definitive statement but very promising so far. Of note to me is that he's consistently looking better than he did in NY (still some hiccups of course) while Teddy looked exactly how he always has during those first games last year. I bring this up because the staff is the common denominator. Getting improved performance like this is a big plus IMO.

Tyler Gaffney is still available as well,maybe Eric Shelton for some goal line power.

Except they were both hurt in Houston, not in Charlotte.

The only logical and rational conclusion, really.

Thomas made the key block that allowed Tremble to score. Just sayin'.

I don't think Sherman (or any other proven vet) signed tons reasonable 1-year deal would fall into that category, but I do agree that this isn't 2015 where a Cortland Finnegan-type midseason signing is going to make or break the team. With Bouye coming back and a longer week it seems wise to hold tight.

Across the entire team there seemed some grit last night that was perhaps a bit lacking last year, the ability to increase resolve and shut the Texans back down after those couple of good drives. I also liked that the offense seemed to have an answer after stalling out the final drives of the first half.

That's hilarious.

As is the Panthers way.

His own timid play and pathetic attitude, particularly as the season went on, are the only things laid directly on him IMO. Agreed that the team was expected to be bad last year but it definitely had a negative impact on the team and their ability to win in critical situations. Also agreed that all parties involved appear better off at this point and it will be interesting to see what happens when Denver faces a real team much like Darnold here in Carolina, though the Saints are a tier or two above the Jags and Giants.

Even though they lost that game Jake was on fire in 2007, 8 TDs to 1 int in less than 3 games before the attack of Tommy Jone.

That was his 3rd TD of the day. Carolina started that game red hot and jumped to a 14-0 lead, with Smitty having a bobbled tip-drill TD pass as well. Then the wheels fell off.

I enjoyed Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. It's not as adult as others but was decently well done, and had the nostalgia factor from reading the books as a kid.

Ha! Love it.

Nah, they just need more money bet on Houston.

So what is Teddy's strength then? The whole point of bringing him in was supposedly because Brady wanted to capitalize on his strengths... but then he just opted not to? Also, are we to believe that Rhule, Brady, et al just didn't spend time working on red zone/a clear area of weakness? That makes little sense. I'm not saying that there's zero truth in Teddy's comments and I'm still not fully warm on Rhule but Teddy spent the entire season deflecting blame with 'we' being the operative term for failure. He was wholly unimpressive both on and off the field and may be better for the experience depending on what happens in Denver, but what a waste of a year.

To look at things from an optimists point of view, offensive lines oftentimes improve as the year goes on assuming that there isn't extensive shuffling due to injury. If this is the baseline and we do see improvement throughout the year then that the team may be in a decent place toward the end. Now, I'm not saying to retain underperfomring players or that changes shouldn't be made if there is someone that may be better. I still don't understand the Erving and Elflein signings given who else was out there (Reiff was my target) and Elflein may well play himself out of a job. It will be worth watching in the coming weeks as competition gets better as well.

After my comment about Lamar's performance in bigger games he deviated from that trend tonight. Really turned it around after this early mistakes.

That Chiefs/Rams game from 2 years ago gets hailed as some amazing game but IMO was the same thing. Agreed that crappy defense isn't the fun to watch, and I'll even go so far as to say that the Rams/Patriots Super Bowl was highly entertaining despite the score because it was a defensive battle.