MHS831

Mays stepping up was huge. Expect him to improve. He seemed to be accepted by the OL, especially Hunt. that is a good sign. He had a 75 PFF pass blocking grade and a 67 run blocking grade. That is starting material for a developing center.

Milton was not good vs the run, per PFF.

If he was 5'11" from Beaufort NC he would have been a third or fourth rounder. Seriously, I could see where a 5'11", 300 lb DT could be a real problem for some OL consistent. Should be in the $16m range.

I like the DT from Dallas. I think Morgan will splash with a few big signings day 1 like he did with Hunt and Lewis last year. I agree. Stay away from the big $$$ if possible

Had not thunk of that. That is a better comparison.

As a guy who was a defensive coordinator at Walker's high school years ago, (coincidence and not related to my point), I look at the fact that some teams will try to keep your run defense on the field and transition a back and TE to WR roles without subbing and forcing you to keep your run D on the field to defend them. However, if we had a Strongside Edge who could move inside to a 3, 4i, or 5 technique, Parsons could then slide in beside him as an edge. In other words, the way I am seeing it without giving it a ton of thought, it would give you a dominant pass rush on passing downs. If you did that, your NT would stay put, which is why Evero likes smaller NTs that can pressure the passer. Then Brown, for example, could slide out to a 3, 4i, or 5 technique and your rush edge (only in this situation) could rush--giving you 5 DL/Edge getting after the QB from any number of alignments, with the option to drop Walker or the rush edge into coverage. Then the MLB, Nickel, and maybe a S could blitz because a RB and TE in this formation can be covered with a lone S or even the LB in some cases. Whew. I have seen offenses running the hurry up doing this more and more, and the large edge-holding Edge and a hybrid ILB could be the answer.

It is really hard to gauge Walker because he is not nailed to one position, so your comparisons are very limited--that probably explains the range of opinions on him. I think he wears 11 for a reason, and that is to make people compare him to Parsons. The Combine will be huge for him.

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I can always count on you being up, Aussie, when nobody else is here!! Yeah, that is my problem--a tweener for a first round pick and a system that may not know how to use him.

I would like to know if Walker is going to market himself as an edge or hybrid ILB? It is easy to say Micah Parsons and move on, but we are talking Evero here--has anyone heard anything or are we assuming Walker is a LB who can move to edge etc. like MP? It is hard to give him value if we don't really know where he will play--he is small for an edge, imo, but that is his best spot--any opinions?

Yes, it sure was. He just gave me 2 days worth of homework. I would add that cutting players to increase cap room is a bit misleading because you still have to fill 53 jerseys--so if you cut a guy and benefit by $1m, who are you replacing him with?

good memory. We do--I still say we are 2 years away (said it last year) but when your first two picks are XL and Brooks, you just have not grown. I am not giving up on XL and think Brooks might be pretty good in 2026, when we have paid him for 4 years to play 2 and had to pay someone else to take his place until then. So basically we got Wallace, a fringe starting LB who would probably be better as depth, Sanders, a TE with potential, and a weak nickel in Smith Wade. That did not make us better. XL needs to step up, Bryce needs to continue to get better, and we need a defense that can keep us in games.

I see that--so no to T-Mac and no to Will Johnson? I could build a case to support you for each player.

Call Vegas---I am all in now!!!!

he always was self-centered. Great athlete, but he was about some Cam. Maybe that was his way of being great--but think how he must have been treated his entire life--so he was a product of us. He is also very kind to his fans--saw him signing autographs for people after OTAs--he missed my son, holding a Cam jersey, and saw it when he looked back--he froze and looked sad, then smiled and ran back to him and signed it. I saw him "showing off" at practice when nobody was in the stands--high energy, fun, contagious. Finally, I would say his teammates may not feel about the organization like Cam does. I think the Panthers should have protected him better, offensive line, had him run less, slide more, and never let him run that QB draw. But RR was worried about his job, and Cam is a gamer--Cam took a beating like no other QB before him--and he did it for the team. So his bitterness may be misguided here. Rivera and Hurney need to take some responsibility for the shortening of Cam's career and the feeling that he might have had the team on his back. The OL was usually bad and there were not the best weapons after 89. I understand it--he is not handling it well, but I see his source of irritation.

I would not be mad--I get it--and Khyber has solid reasons. He'd definitely take the offense to the next level--my concern? Who do we have to keep the defensive backs from crowding the LOS? We need a deep threat--and that does not have to be in the first or the draft. We need a #1, I just do not see them out there this year--and I don't think Free Agency has them

Pretty solid if you ask me--was here for a game or two in 2023 (I forgot about him) Think about his situation--lotta outdoor stadiums, not really familiar with the holder/longsnapper in many situations, and he is 7/11 from 50 and beyond. FYI--I looked it up--a "good" percentage for an NFL Kicker to be considered "reliable" is 80-85% (closer to 85% recently):

You are right--Walls left before Jake arrived. My bad. I watched the tape and he was a Swiss Army TE like you say. I am warming to the idea--just figured we were not in play because he is a mid first rounder--giving the 8th pick is a high price for a TE. I would not be mad because I have been pounding the table for a stud TE this winter. I think the Huddle would lose their minds.

It is mid February---so happy Valentine's Day Verge--now, to the issue: As of right now, with Daniel Jeremiah claiming that there are 24 starting DTs in this draft--you look to trade back--my theory is a team looking for an offensive tackle might want to move up; a good team might want Jeanty and be willing to move up as well. If not, I think the choice is going to come down to TMac (WR) or Will Johnson (CB). Mykel Williams (Edge) or Jalon Walker (LB/Edge) might get some love if Evero sees a way he can use their versatility. Some think TE Tyler Warren too, but I just watched some highlights--He's no Brock Bowers who went 12th last year.

If I am Morgan, I make a prioritized list (Let's call it my "board") and I take the best player remaining. I make this list based on fit, player performance, need, and the availability of players at the position. For this exercise, I am not going to prioritize, but I will make a list, "board" if you will, of players who might be there when we pick at 8: (I am assuming that Carter, Hunter, Sanders, and Ward will be gone. Graham (unlikely) DT Johnson CB Warren TE TMac WR Mykel Williams Edge Walker LB Looking at it from this perspective, Warren could be the player on the board who will make the biggest impact. I see Johnson as the favorite if we do not re-sign Jackson. TMac is interesting, but I read somewhere that he would have been the fourth or even fifth-rated WR in last season's draft--the fourth WR taken was Thomas and he went 23rd overall. Warren could be the better value and make the bigger impact. The last two players on this list are Swiss Army knives that would be drafted only if Evero pounds the table for them--Walker is a LB/Edge weapon, and Williams can kick inside on passing downs while holding the edge on running downs. He will either get drafted early or drop to the end of the round, imo--hard to evaluate and fit with teams.

I am reluctantly in agreement with you. Here is my take-- Side A: Yes, a TE would boost this offense, perhaps more than a WR (from this draft) because it would open things up and cause mismatch issues--Bryce needs a check down and a guy who can run seam routes, drags, etc, When the Panthers have been successful, they have had a stud TE (Walls, Olsen) and a stud MLB (Mills, Morgan, Beason, Luke)...Walls was a huge target for Delhomme and Cam relied on Olsen a LOT....I have stated that the NFL Draft is loaded at DT, but did not know HOW loaded. Daniel Jeremiah stated that in 2024, he had 12 DTs with starter grades. This year, he has 24. That means a starting DT is going to be there in round 3. Side B: Drafting any TE at 8 is a reach. Bowers last year went 12th. The Falcons took Kyle Pitts at 4 and have not used him well....Sanders flashed in 2024. Is that enough if he takes the usual rookie to sophomore leap?....Is TE a player most teams find in round 1? Is Warren on the Brock Bowers level? (I have not researched him at all)

Reason for encouragement Remember folks, we lost to the Chiefs by 3 and the Eagles by 6 in Philly. In the Chiefs game, Pinero kicked 4 FGs--the longest was 33 yards--we were knocking, but couldn't get in. In the Eagles game, Bryce threw for 100 yards more than the Super Bowl MVP and the Panthers were leading in the fourth quarter--Bryce was sacked 1 time-Jewell had more sacks than the Eagles. Both games were after Nov 24.

I'd like to add this: Even though DT is our biggest need (I think we need a NT and a DE), maybe DT should not be the #1 pick. Daniel Jeremiah (pretty smart for an App State person said that last year he had NFL starter grades on 12 DTs in the draft. This year, he has 24. That strongly suggests that a stud will be there on day 2.