jayboogieman

The bolded part derails your draft the QB in the first round argument. As you stated, 4 winning seasons with an elite WR and franchise QB. The Panthers had 3 winning seasons with a franchise QB(Cam). A good team can win with an average QB. A franchise QB can't win without a good team. The best thing the Panthers could do is draft impact players at positions of need. They seem to think QB is no longer a need. They might be right and they might be wrong. Either Darnold has a Delhomme like turn or proves he's the next Clausen and leads to the next franchise QB. Either way the Panthers win. If the Panthers draft a QB, it'll probably be a developmental guy in the mid rounds since that is what the GM says he prefers to do.

Considering telling the future is beyond humanity, yeah, you don't know what the future holds. You called guys bums when you have zero idea of who they might be before they are signed or drafted by the Panthers. That's being negative. Is Fields or one of the other big five QBs in this class a bum if they get drafted by the Panthers and take over for Darnold at some point during the season or next year? Your paying for PSLs doesn't matter nor would it matter if you never watch a game in person. I'm not high on Tepper or the people he's hired, but I'll give them a chance just like I'll give Darnold a chance.

I've never liked the it's too early to take player X argument. If he's the guy the team wants, take him regardless of what others think. This is especially true if you really fear he won't be there if you trade back. You're one of the most negative people I've seen post here. You have no idea what the future holds and are complaining about it. It's football, not life or death. Depends on the dime and nickels. Some are worth a lot more than others. Watson was never a real option. The Texans never stated they were willing to trade him. Also, did you mean SF? Because it makes no sense to contact them to trade the pick they just gave up 3 first rounders for. The Panthers did really goof on the Teddy situation. If they were all in on someone that was not on the trade market or a free agent, that shows very poor judgement by the braintrust. And if it is true, it could mean the future will not be bright for the Panthers.

A cool actor with a great name in a kickass movie. I saw the Wyatt Earp/Tombstone episode of American Lawmen. Kurt Russell was one of the people that talked and he came across as such a Wyatt Earp fanboy.

Those teams you named also had established starters at QB with more complete teams around them. They could afford to take a QB in the first to sit and develop. The Panthers don't. Maybe, maybe not. The Panthers may be sold on Darnold being the guy and not want to draft a QB early. They may decide to take one in the later rounds as a developmental guy though. Just because they are saying they might take a QB doesn't mean it'll be in the first. The GM did say he liked taking developmental guys in the mid to late rounds every couple of years. That could be what they are talking about. You keep assuming Darnold is just a break glass in case of emergency type move. They very well may think he can be a franchise QB and are content. You're also assuming a good or decent tackle will be available at 39. There could be a run on tackles in the late first and before the Panthers pick in the second. If all those guys starter type guys are gone, then what? Whine and moan all season as whoever is QB gets hammered repeatedly? Only Marty thought Clausen was a starter. Nobody really thought Moore was a starter either. Reports even said he tried to trade up into the first to take Clausen, but the other GMs saved Marty from himself. Clausen and Moore also didn't have a good coaching staff. Fox and Co were checked out and on cruise control in his lame duck season. The playoff teams also have pretty good lines, which the Panthers don't. Depending on how the staff feels about Darnold, they may think they have their QB despite what you think.

I'm not a bookie, so I have no idea what the odds are. Can't really play the what if game as other things could have happened to keep the Panthers out of the the playoffs. What if the teams the Panthers played had played better? What if the Panthers have more injuries? You could go on and on. Multiple picks might help the team if the players pan out. Same is true if they pick an LT, QB, or something else at 8. All we actually know is that the Panthers are currently positioned to have their choice of several very good players at 8. We also know it is past time to get a top flight LT to help protect whoever is the QB they trot out. Darnold is a guy that has thrown 39 picks in 38 games. He could be awful enough to throw picks on game winning drives in multiple games. That said, the hope is that he proves to be a franchise QB. I'm not a UNC homer, but from what I've seen of Howell is pretty good. He has potential and could end up better than most of the QBs in this class. Time will tell. It's been reported that the Panthers are not sold on some of the top 5 QBs in this class and have compared Darnold to them. They traded for Darnold. It doesn't matter if it was to cover their bases or because they believe he can be the guy. He's on the team now and I'll hope for his success. If he doesn't pan out and if the team is in a better spot next season, and they decide to trade up for a QB, so be it. If they were to trade up next year and the team is still in a bad spot, just like this year, I wouldn't like it at all.

If Sam can't be fixed, odds are the Panthers will end up with a worse record and higher draft pick. Not true. Taking what could be an elite player at another position benefits the team, especially if it is an LT.

I get that. A lot of that problem was the previous regime ignoring the Oline or dumpster diving for players. Hopefully the new guys will do better. I disagree. The Panthers have had guys that were below average, average, and maybe above average on the line. Those generally don't work out well for long, if they ever work out at all. You can't have all pro players at every position, but you can have good ones at the positions that matter most. The Oline is supposed to be part of that group of positions that matter most. Panther fans just haven't seen it treated as such in a decade or so.

You can make that same argument for every position except QB. I think it really comes down to how dominate the guy is. If I was a GM, I would rather have and pay a guy that rarely gives up a sack or pressure vs two guys that were decent and gave up several pressures and a few sacks each.

Those second contracts are based off their play and growth, not draft positions.

All but four teams have gone to the Superbowl, so that's not a huge accomplishment. Winning it on the other hand is a huge accomplishment. Individual awards don't mean much when the team still posted a losing record that year. I won't argue that the team was mismanaged back then. It's yet to be determined if that streak is going to continue or not.

Part of me thinks everything they have done is in an effort to make up for the total botch they made in handling Teddy this offseason and pressure from the owner's box. It might not end well either. Different staffs and owner now vs the Cam and Jake years. People always complained about Ron's talent evaluation skills. There is a chance the current guys are just as bad or worse instead of better. They might think Darnold is their franchise guy and be all in on him. And as I replied to ForJimmy, a lot of their actions could be in an effort to recover from the botch job they did of handling Teddy this offseason. And Teddy was signed for three years, not two.

And the Panthers braintrust may think Darnold is a franchise guy.

Can you read minds? How do you know they weren't all in with Teddy or thinking they are all in on Darnold? The Panthers signed Teddy for over 60 million. Cam was making less when he was a Panther. Going by the contract, they were all in on Teddy. Just because the Jets haven't traded the pick yet doesn't mean they couldn't trade it draft day and still get a QB they want before the Panthers pick. The Panthers brain trust might have a different opinion than you do about Darnold. They might think he is a franchise guy. The Panthers had a legit star caliber QB with a crap Oline. How well did that work out for them? How many back to back winning seasons did they have with that star QB? How many superbowls did that star QB win for them? You're assuming other teams won't take that good OL late in the first or before the Panthers pick in the second.

Much better organizations usually have an older established vet at QB, a better overall team, and can afford to let a guy sit for a year or two. The Panthers aren't in that position. Being all in on Darnold is no more dangerous than being all in on an unproven rookie draft pick. New England and Green Bay had established vet starters and could afford to slowly bring a guy along. And exactly how many of those New England guys have been successes outside of New England's system? What if the staff think Darnold is a bona fide NFL franchise QB and don't see the need to draft a QB? What if they draft a rookie who plays and he ends up beyond mediocre? LT is such an important spot to get right that IF YOU DON'T HAVE ONE, when you're in position to take one, you do so if you believe in him. Now replace LT with CB, guard, center, safety, etc and you have the current Panthers. The FO may believe Darnold is a franchise QB. If that is the case and Sewell or Slater is there, the team should take whichever is there instead of trading back.

Said QB had been run into the ground because the previous regime didn't believe in providing him with a good protection. People don't want just any kind of help like Scott and Erving at LT, they want a very good to elite LT. People are hung up on LT because they want to see someone that can anchor the position for years and not the poor patches that have been offered up the last decade or so. As for things not going according to plan or injuries, the same could be happen to whatever rookie QB you want. I wasn't aware the Panthers were picking at 5. Even if Atlanta or SF don't pick him, he would still have to last until 8. Other teams could trade up for him.

The FO might feel different about hesitating due to not liking whichever QB falls. At the start of last season people talked about Fields being 1B to Lawrence's 1A. Since the season ended, he has slipped down boards for some reason. The most I've seen against him is the college he went to and something about processing speed. There might be more that I've missed. Lance went to a small school and played against lesser competition. He is also supposed to be raw. Wilson has injury concerns and only one really good year from what I've seen. Jones is supposed to be a product of his school and the talent around him. All have question marks and most of them probably wouldn't be top ten picks in any other year. This year is just the perfect storm for QBs. I've said I prefer taking a tackle as that is a huge hole that has needed to be addressed for a long time. I wouldn't be mad if the Panthers take a QB, but I would be disappointed as I feel tackle is a bigger need. I would feel the same if they take a CB, WR, or Pitts over Slater or Sewell if they are there. Every first rounder has a greater chance of success than later picks. That's why those guys are in the first round.

All four of those guys were also picked by pretty good teams with established starters at their position.

If you want to be technical, Thomas Davis is the lone safety drafted in the first round by the Panthers, even if he ended up a LB. And yeah, Gamble was the last CB taken in the first. The Panthers have never drafted a TE in the first. Watch Pitts be there and this be the year even with QB and tackle prospects there. But if you can't just go by first round picks, the Panthers should be able to find a franchise QB with a later pick.

The Chargers Oline was hampered by injuries more than anything else last year. It was supposed to be better than it ended up. I do remember seeing that they cut bait with Turner, so I'll give you that they have holes in their line. The Browns had a pretty good line before they drafted Baker and it has gotten better since then. The Bengals have drafted guys for their line before Burrow as well, but again, injuries took their toll. The Panthers haven't put in top or first round talent in their Oline since Jeff Otah in 2008 and only three Oline guys(tackles) have been drafted in the history of the franchise. They have drafted five LBs and four RBs in the first though. The Panthers have also only drafted two QBs, but both were top five picks that didn't fall in their respective drafts.

The difference between those teams and the Panthers is they were in a much better position talent wise. The Chiefs in particular were a QB away. The Panthers are not. Fields or any other QB won't matter if they can't protect him. I'd rather wait on the QB and make sure he can be protected rather than ruin him. There was this Cajun named Jake that did pretty well after being the league as a backup for 3 years.

Let's try this then, most of the team couldn't get the ball in the ocean if they were a foot away from it.

This Cavs game is just sad. Dell said earlier that it was a defensive struggle. Is that the new code phrase for these guys can't shoot?

The fact that writer got paid to write the same speculation that people have been posting here is just sad.

I'd be happy with either as well. But, if both are gone for some reason, I'd take Pitts in a heartbeat.