Cam's new weapons

[Cj72]

The offense was bad ie bottom half of the league. Anything less than a top 10 O and D is unacceptable.

With how good our D is we should be scoring 30 points a game. ie more stops / better field position / more possessions etc.

That's a good point too, but which is better? A top 3 defense and a bottom 5 offense which scores when needed, or a top 15 offense and defense. If you throw in defensive scores it is a tougher choice than it appears to be on the surface.

Personally I would like more offense, but I can't argue too much with what worked last year.

[FootballMaestro]

Very well written, minus the 'over populated Big Apple Rat Hole' comment. 

[FootballMaestro]

In your third paragraph (sorry cant bold on phone) you made a good point about playing up tempo offense. Our offense was the most fluid when we ran it and cam seems more comfortable in that type of offense. He also excelled in college in an up tempo offense, coincidence? I think shula lacks the killer instinct most other offenses in the nfl have

 

This is a good point (not Shula Bashing here). 

 

Cam ran the Hurry Up,  2 minute offense (particularly at the end of halves or near end of games) very well. I would have hoped that Shula would have done that more often. 

 

Of course you don't have to do it all game. But I do agree, you shouldn't have to wait till your behind to do this. It's something that should have been spread out periodically in each game to keep the defense off balance and Cam in stride/involved. 

 

Hopefully, we'll see more of that this year, with more sure handed receivers who can get open, along with the OL doing their part. 

[top dawg]

There was a 2-3 week period during the off-season when we almost literally had no WR's on the roster. So what? Last time I checked there aren't any football games played during the off-season. Last time I checked, in order to bring in new talent, you have to first make room. It was a tough call to make, but it was the right call.

 

Gettleman's cojones, chiseled from his time spent in that over-populated rat race of a hell hole called The Big Apple (also, ironically, another nickname for Gettleman's cojones) have served him well. They have served all of us well. SCP, you wonder why Gettleman wears those shorts so high? When you have balls of solid steel, you can't let them hang low and swing around, that's how people get injured.

 

Let's take a look at Cam's new and improved weapons compared to last year.

 

WR1: Kelvin Benjamin. I am going to agree with David Newton here, Kelvin Benjamin will be more productive than a 35 y/o Smith.

Verdict - WR1: Improved.

 

WR2: Jerricho Cotchery. I am going to compare Cotchery to LaFell. Wait a second, I can't. It's not even close. Let's not forget Cotchery had as many touchdowns as Steve Smith + Greg Olsen from last year.

Verdict - WR2: Improved.

 

WR3: Ted Ginn. Ah yes, Teddy "I can't catch deep balls even though I am a deep threat" Ginn. Needless to say, Underwood can stretch the field just as fast, and Avant can make those clutch 3rd down catches.

Verdict - WR3: Improved

 

WR4 (depth): Not too much to say about individual players here, but with McNutt and King having more time under their belt, plus our coaches being pretty high on them leads me to think we have some solid depth here should the need arise. The loss of Hixon hurts somewhat. Even though he just couldn't stay on the field, he had some solid production when asked to step in. The increase of two TE sets this year makes this not so important.

Verdict - WR4: Push

 

TE1: Greg Olsen. Nothing changed.

Verdict - TE1: Push

 

TE2: Dickson vs Williams. Needless to say, much improved over last year in terms of receiving targets for Cam. Gettleman clearly gave Williams a roster spot last year in the hopes he could become a vertical threat this year for Cam. We shall see if it works out.

Verdict - TE2: Improved

 

Offensive Line:

I am not going to go into the same detail here. The LT spot will have a noticeable drop off, however the interior of our line will be much improved with the return of Amini and the addition of Turner.

O-line overall: Push or slight drop off.

 

 

 

TL/dr:

The panthers come out in their new offensive set. Kelvin Benjamin at WR1, Greg Olsen at TE1, Brandon Williams at TE2, and the sure-handed Cotchery at WR2. Cam doesn't have any weapons? GTFO

 

I I believe that it's too early to presume what our receiving corps. will look like come September, and I kind of discussed that here, http://www.carolinahuddle.com/boards/index.php?app=forums&module=post&section=post&do=reply_post&f=7&t=100793&qpid=2785921, though Knox Bardeen's message was that our WR corps is still a big concern.

 

I appreciate the optimism, but I also recognize the fact that there are still huge concerns regarding our group of WRs as currently constituted and taking their body of work into account (not to mention Shula's body of work also).  At the end of the day, I am not going to go ape in either direction. But, as I have consistently said, I believe that we need another legitimate threat who can "take it to the house" every time he touches the ball. 

 

Cotchery, Avant and Underwood are not spring chickens anymore, especially Cotchery who is getting a little long in the tooth.  Regardless of their age, it is my contention that what they have done over their careers in the NFL is largely going to tell you what to expect here. And I am not just talking from a production standpoint, because of course it stands to reason that IF they (along with Benjamin) are our main guys they should see a modest uptick in stats, but this is not going to change the fact that they are possession type receivers. Moreover, all the optimism in the world doesn't change the cold, hard fact that these veterans are WR3s/4s on possibly all the teams in the NFL except this one (and maybe Cleveland). 

 

I think that it's paramount to pick up another real weapon, regardless if he's imperfect or not, some time before the start of the season---that, or for one of the other young, unproven WRs to step up in a big way (And, yes, I said "WR").  I have been saying all along that perhaps our best hope right now is that either McNutt or King steps up to fill that WR2 void.  This is assuming that Benjamin can make a bigger impact than is usually manifested by a rookie WR.  One of these guys is going to have to be a pleasant surprise (and I'll even skeptically throw Philly Brown into the mix), and be able to pull away some pressure from KB or make defenses pay dearly when they are doubling KB in order for our offense to run at optimum levels. Relying on Greg Olsen to play the role of the WR1/2 is not going to cut it, and the same goes for Brandon Williams.  

 

Looking in my crystal ball, I can already see defenses stacking the box, taking away our running game, and daring Cam and our receiving corps to beat us.  And you know that with that stacked box comes lots of pressure. At this point, it's anyone's guess what the outcome is going to be. But if we look at what Shula has done in the past, and take Rivera's words about replacing the 10 catches seriously, I wouldn't necessarily look for a drastic change in our offensive philosophy.  We're going to rely on defense (yet again).  Will we be able to get by most teams with this rely-on-defense-at-all-costs philosophy? Maybe.  Will we be able to the playoffs? Possibly.  Will we be able to get by the top teams with a similar philosophy (i.e., rely-on-defense) but break out some greater offensive firepower when it's time to move towards the apex of the hill? I can't say that I believe that we're ready yet.  

 

TLDR; Cam's new weapons (and new-old weapons) and our play calling are still suspect, and we had better hope for a surprise from FA or the younger ranks of our roster to get over the hump if we want to contend for championships.

[FootballMaestro]

People seriously underrate ginn. Like really really really underestimate him. I agree with your opinion on number 1 and 2 but smith would've been nice to keep

Sent from my iPhone using CarolinaHuddle

 

Yes, Ginn was very good on crossing routes, and made some big plays there. However, he was useless on deep place, not being able to take advantage of his great speed and Cam's arms. 

[FootballMaestro]

Please give examples... from what I saw our defense won us a ton of games with a very poor offense.

Shula continually called plays on 3rd and five that requires the receiver to run ten yards instead of six, Shula continually tried to run the ball up the middle when our success was coming outside the tackle's, Shula continually abandoned the running game in the 2nd half of games which led to many three and out series'.... need any more examples.

Just because you THINK the result will be different doesn't mean it will... i.e. Ego.

Oh and lol at letting Cam create plays for himself... There was only one game where most of the fan base reacted saying "he's finally letting him be himself" and that was in the second game against Tampa.

 

Huh?

 

Cam had a game winning drive/play late in the season, and Rivera expressly said it was Cam's play that he came up with. 

 

Shula had also said in interviews early in the season that Cam had input in the play calling. 

 

I will agree Shula wasn't perfect last year. However, let's see how he reacts with Cam having one more year under his belt (and GMan cleaning house for him); Shula himself having one more year under his belt, and new personnel???

 

We can't always predict NEXT YEAR, based off of LAST YEAR. If you do, it probably won't be a great season for your team (as the opposition will know exactly what you're doing, unless you just have All Pro players at all/most positions). 

[MadHatter]

Two issues with the OP,

KB may have big upside but a rookie is too unpredictable. Can't call it an upgrade yet.

Losing Gross is going to be a big loss. No way it is close to a push on the OL.

[FootballMaestro]

I would like to see both the offense and the defense in the top half of the league. 

 

Neither one needs to be in the top 5 (depending on where they fall).

 

Let's face it, the Carolina defense was a great traditional defense. However, it didn't score points for the team as Seattle's for example. And it was that lack of scoring and weapons in the playoffs that cost the Panthers games. So I wouldn't mind if the defense fell off just little with the offense improving a bit more 

 

And it just may, with Cam being the unquestioned leader on offense now (thanks GMan); Shula having another year on his belt and some help in his new Assistant Coach), along with the new additions? The wild card will be the Oline. Hopefully a returning and improved Amini, will somewhat off set the loss of Gross?

[Ace_Aladdin]

Top 10 Offense and Defense in 2014

 

You must not know football if you believe the Offense didn't have any effect on the Defense (See Philly for ex.). Although the scoring was low due to lack of real power run game, sub par OL, and WR.  

 

 

2013: 18th in Total Points | # 9 in 3rd dwn conversion 91/208 | # 5 in 4th dwn conversion 10/13 | # 14 in Total TD's with 38 

 

# 11 in rushing with 2,026 with 14 TDs.  

 

 

 

 

Panthers have mastered the art of long drive and ToP, with the return of injured players and  2014 draft will give Panthers a balanced offense that can sustain long drives and score in red-zone.

 

All categories will go up   ^ in 2014

 

 

http://www.nfl.com/stats/categorystats?archive=false&conference=null&role=TM&offensiveStatisticCategory=TOUCHDOWNS&defensiveStatisticCategory=null&season=2013&seasonType=REG&tabSeq=2&qualified=false&Submit=Go

[SCP]

I tend to agree with the OP. My biggest concern are the tackle spots but we are solid if not better everywhere else.

[TheRumGone]

You can have an ego without being prideful. I think that's where we differ. I think you're associating the word ego with pride as in what a player may have as where I'm associating it with unwillingness to change (what a coach may have) You can be well liked an unwilling to change and still have an ego (i.e. Rivera again).

In my opinion Shula might not be willing to change the way he calls plays because he's stuck in the status quo. I say this because he calls games almost identically to the way he called them in Tampa.

You have Cam Newton along with the second best defense in the league... you can afford to play up-tempo once in awhile and then change it back to a ball-control offense (i.e. the Saints).

Games such as the second Saints game (yes we won, but that was due to Cam being Cam, the play calling was horrible the entire game), the playoff game (we drove down the field with a mix of run and pass plays on the 49ers and then went completely to a pass first offense and got blown out), you mentioned the AZ game (Shula made no adjustment to AZ bringing the blitz damn near every play), the game against Miami (another poorly called game that we we lose, unless Newton doesn't get hit out of bounds and we pick up the extra yardage). We can't afford to have these types of games next year because our schedule is full of teams that either have great offenses or great defenses. The days of playing the Bills, Jets, Dolphins, Rams etc. are done. We're going to have to either score enough points to keep up with these high octane offenses or somehow manage to put up enough points to beat these great defenses.

I agree I'd like us to sprinkle in more up tempo in our games. It suits Cams playing style and he seems to really get into a groove when that happens. We can't go overboard with it like philly. Our defense would become tired. It's about finding a good balance.

I think the ramsdell hire will have a good impact right now. As the coaches are reviewing tape from last year and Shula is getting consultation from cam and ramsdell. Moreso cam since he's limited physically right now.

If Shula listened to player input and implemented that I don't see how he doesn't listen to ramsdell and implement his thoughts. Shula is not dumb and not abrasive.

[FootballMaestro]

Top 10 Offense and Defense in 2014

 

You must not know football if you believe the Offense didn't have any effect on the Defense (See Philly for ex.). Although the scoring was low due to lack of real power run game, sub par OL, and WR.  

 

 

2013: 18th in Total Points | # 9 in 3rd dwn conversion 91/208 | # 5 in 4th dwn conversion 10/13 | # 14 in Total TD's with 38 

 

# 11 in rushing with 2,026 with 14 TDs.  

 

 

 

 

Panthers have mastered the art of long drive and ToP, with the return of injured players and  2014 draft will give Panthers a balanced offense that can sustain long drives and score in red-zone.

 

All categories will go up   ^ in 2014

 

 

http://www.nfl.com/stats/categorystats?archive=false&conference=null&role=TM&offensiveStatisticCategory=TOUCHDOWNS&defensiveStatisticCategory=null&season=2013&seasonType=REG&tabSeq=2&qualified=false&Submit=Go

 

This is what we're all hoping. 

[Billy Love]

I'm ready for some panther 2014 football...period!!!! I've got a good feeling about this offense and our new WR corp. I believe KB is going to impress as a rookie, because I believe more in coach Proehl

[Way Truth Life]

KB with Steve Smith in the slot and Ted Ginn at #3 would have been the ideal lineup and nothing said here will change that fact.

 

I do believe this new lineup is much better than I anticipated back in March though.....so that being said...thanks Gman gets a B-